Highlights from around the region with Haydyn Foulke

5/19/2020

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Dear STAY Family,

We are excited to introduce the first of our summer newsletter series from Haydyn Foulke a STAY Project member from Southwest Virginia who is currently a Community and Justice studies major at Guilford College in NC. Haydyn has been interviewing young people in our region about how COVID-19 is impacting their lives and will be writing about it for our newsletter! We are excited to share Haydyn's work and your stories!

STAY Project Steering Committee met over zoom last Saturday and decide that we cannot in good conscious bring folks from across six states together this summer for our Summer Institute and risk the lives of our members or their communities. We are very sad that we will not get to see y'all in person but we are excited to announce that the Summer Institute will take place both virtually and in your own home/community throughout the month of July. Stay tuned for more information on how to participate, if you are interested in getting involved with the planning of this new Summer Institute experience, email us or dm us on instagram.

Finally, we want to share our full-throated support and solidarity with the freedom fighters in Minneapolis rioting against state sanctioned murder of George Floyd. Rioting is a refusal to accept the system and institutions that say it is acceptable cops to murder Black people. We honor our rage and grief by refusing to be complicit in systemic violence against marginalized people. To support the freedom fighters in Minneapolis you can donate here.

To the young Black folks in our membership–– we love you so much, take care of yourself and your mental health, all of the feelings you are having are real and valid. If you need resources for your mental health, we have made a list available in this email.

Solidarity, health, & kinship,

The STAY Project staff & steering committee

Visit our Resource Page on our website for information resources on COVID-19.

If you need funds for organizing a response in your community please apply to our member support fund

Donate to theKSEC/STAY Mutual Aid Fund

COVID-19 and Appalachian Youth

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, existing inequalities are thrust into public consciousness. Currently, young people in Appalachia are feeling the effects: missed graduations, trouble accessing the internet, significant layoffs, and lack of COVID testing. Health disparities in Appalachia have existed for decades, and many fear that when rural areas get hit, they will get hit hard. Jesse, a young person living in western North Carolina says, “that’s what terrifies me, is that we’re rural, so we’re going to see our peak after the cities do.” Not everyone, however, is concerned, as we’ve seen people ignoring health guidelines and gathering in public demonstrations to open the economy. Jesse fears the repercussions of opening back up; “People already aren’t listening: they are tired of the stay at home order.”

Jesse and his wife Sierra Asheworth, are both high risk for the virus. Sierra, a public health student, is extremely concerned about the lasting health implications of COVID-19, as research shows it could affect the body in unexpected ways like blood clots and permanently damage organs like the kidneys and lungs. The concern for their health and the health of their loved ones is palpable, even as we chat over zoom, as they discuss their preexisting conditions and family health history.

Sierra has lost her mother and aunt to cancer, and is potentially high risk herself. Jesse’s grandfather worked in a coal mine in West Virginia, and suffered from black lung. Jesse lives with both asthma and Ehler’s Danlos disease, a chronic illness that targets joints. The common national narrative is that COVID-19 only puts older folks at risk for getting sick, but the reality is many young people, especially in Appalachia, have preexisting health conditions that give this virus potential to cause serious damage to the body. Sierra says it all started to feel real to her when her childhood best friend, whom she grew up with, passed away from COVID-19 just a few weeks ago.

Young people across Appalachia are being effected by this, especially graduating high school and college seniors who no longer able to attend a graduation ceremony. Laura Helayne, a high school senior in rural Kentucky, is feeling the unique challenges of trying to stay connected with loved ones over the internet, taking care of older relatives, and missing out on a graduation ceremony. She knows that in her community, especially for people who won’t continue their education past high school, that celebration caried a heavy significance. Laura remarks, “And I’m the only person in my household who has actually graduated from highschool, so to not have that graduation really sucks.” Many high schools and colleges are having modified graduation ceremonies to awknowldege and celebrate the hard work of so many students.

STAY Connected & STAY Informed

Mental Health Resources for Black Youth

Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective - A collective of advocates, yoga teachers, artists, therapists, lawyers, religious leaders, teachers, psychologists and activists committed to the emotional/mental health and healing of Black communities. Provides a Black Virtual Therapy Directory and Resource.
Therapy for Black Girls - Podcast & Website. Dr. Joy Harden Bradford is a licensed psychologist, speaker and the host of the wildly popular mental health podcast, Therapy for Black Girls. Her work focuses on making mental health topics more relevant and accessible for Black women and she delights in using pop culture to illustrate psychological concepts.
NAMI (National Alliance for Mental Illness)

We have been able to disperse $15,000 to youth throughout Appalachia to date. We encourage folks to apply as needed and will continue to disperse funds as we have them. Please donate so we can continue to support youth in crisis.

Donate to the COVID-19 Youth Mutual Aid Fund

Regional Happenings

Southern Spring 2020 is 90 days of action across the South to resist injustice and build power.

Southern movements are ready for this moment. With vision. With plans. With experience on every frontline and rooted in our communities. Members of the Southern Movement Assembly are organizing actions and mutual aid projects from April 1 - June 30, 2020 to engage our people, deepen our connections, and exercise our power during this critical moment . . . and we start today.

Actions are being planned from April 1st - June 30th.

Submit your actions & projects HERE

Several of the Southern Movement Assembly’s Governance Council members are anchoring one of the following dates, and invite you to join or plan your own actions on these dates.

April 1 - #SouthCounts2020 Census Actions COMPLETED!
April 20-22 - BP10 & EarthDay50 Actions COMPLETED!
May 1 - Mayday Actions to Protect & Defend Healthcare Workers COMPLETED!
June 19 - Juneteenth Actions to Resist Displacement & Build Mutual Aid
June 20 - World Refugee Day Actions to Resist ICE & Build Community Safety Systems

Planning your actions. We are stronger when we are able to learn from each other and align our work. Stay connected during #SouthernSpring2020:

Share your plans by completing this form.
Join action planning calls to connect weekly with organizers.
Use the hashtags #SouthernPeople’sPower #SouthernSpring2020
Join monthly calls to learn about key actions coming up

For more info, email info@southtosouth.org

Join our Appalachian Youth Movement!

Wanna join the STAY Project? We’ve added a membership form to our website! If you are between the ages of 14-30 and living in Appalachia and want to be a member of the STAY Project, head on over to our membership page and fill out the form.

If you are a current member go ahead and fill out the form to update your information.

Be a part of a movement for youth and by youth that is working towards a just, sustainable, and equitable Appalachia!

Did y'all hear that STAY is now offering financial support to members who are organizing projects/events in their communities? We are able to offer up to $200 to support members’ projects that align with our mission and core beliefs. Specifically, we are hoping to support projects/events that further STAY’s work of providing space for young Appalachians to gather, learn with/from, create, and work together. To learn more and to request support, fill out this form!

When you give to the STAY Project you are nourishing a grassroots movement by youth and for youth in Appalachia. We could not do our work without the support of a community that believes in us. Thank you for believing in us!

Donate to the STAY Project!