ETHICAL TEENS IN DEED

ETHICAL TEENS IN DEED!

of New York Society for Ethical Culture, for 2014-15.
Directed by Audrey Kindred
Ethicsforteens@NYSEC.org
or Akindred@gmail.com, (212)920-4483

Ethics is the court – 

     Deed is the ball –

                    Teens play the game – 

                           ...And the World wins.

* Let's make ETHICS the "coolest"/ "hottest" word in NYC!
    * Let’s make DEED the fairest and funnest team sport 
       in the field of Life!
            * Let’s engage and nourish the HUMANITARIAN 
               within each human!

DEED is at the core of a program offered by Ethical Culture –
DEED, as the courageous action taken
               to express care, to enact change,
                     to grow ethically,
                           to become empowered World citizens.

Through doing deeds together, people gain trust in their larger humanity. Working together in this way, teens (and all people) can safely foster a deepening curiosity and inquiry about one another, bridging essential gaps that are often created among peers through stereotyping and “othering.”

DEED is the ethically engaging medium by which we will foster both internal and interpersonal growth, digging up the roots of “bully behaviors,” and nurturing the roots of compassion.  Caring about Humanity, Life, and the Earth can bring people beyond divisive differences into a space of shared concerns. By acting effectively on those concerns, people can bring out the best in one another, thereby developing the very best in themselves. Discovering deep rooted often invisible common values can transform how we see other people, relate to them, embrace them. Inspiring values that diverse people hold in common can usher them to explore new friendships and alliances beyond first impressions, stereotypes and perceived individual differences.

***********

Hopes for ethical action in high schools:

* Schools or organizations, please let us know if you'd like to host a DEED-CLUB. 

DEED-CLUB proposes this calendar of important days:
     i. International Peace Day --- a United Nations Holiday – 
            this event emphasizes an understanding of Human Rights.
     ii. Mix it up Day – a “bully prevention” vision 
from Teaching Tolerance (published by Sothern Policy Law Center) inviting student to mix up cafeteria seating at lunch through interactive structures, in order to spawn new kinds of conversations and to seed potential new alliances among peers. It offers students the tools and structures to break out of clique-ish patterns. This could happen seasonally, becoming a school practice.
    iii. Civil Rights Day – near Martin Luther King day, 
              this event emphasizes lessons of non-violence and awareness of Civil Rights.
    iv. Speed Deed – an activity “fair” of peer-led doable 
         actions that serve a larger helpful purpose. 

Deed Club proposes two field trip events during the year:
            a. United Nations visit, with National Ethical Service
            b. “NYC Speed Deed!” (at Ethical Culture, 64th Street & Central Park West)

* Schools may arrange to grant community service credits for participants.  

Teen-Deed tool box & resources:

• 1. The three-legged stool: a model for peace builders (based on a vision by Kenyan peace leader, Wangari Matthai)
• 2. Teaching Tolerance -- Online Magazine for Educators
• 3. Anti-bully initiatives
• 4. Compassionate Communication -- Conflict Resolution
• 5. National Service Board: International Day of Peace
• 6. United Nations Declaration of Human Rights
• 7. Self care workshops: connecting inner self care practices to outreach, service and deed.

If participation in this program interests you, please let us know. Thank you.

Speed Deed Inaugerated!

New York Society for Ethical Culture's 
Ethics For Teen Leaders Program 
Launches SPEED DEED

by Audrey Kindred, (Ethical Education Program Developer/Director)

NYSEC's Ethics For Teen Leaders has inaugurated a new program:  Speed Deed.  Speed Deed is an activism fair where people learn about and participate in various deeds while having fun and building friendships.   People are invited to discover their activist leanings, through interactive, grassroots, creative, humanitarian and environmental projects.  

At NYSEC, the crowd pot-lucked together among portrait murals by NYSEC teens in a space that doubles as NYSEC's women's shelter. Once fed, with newly budding friendships, they embarked upon deeds.  Nine project tables, arranged like rays of sun, housed nine projects.  In shifts of three at a time, each deed-leader offered their wisdom about a cause, inviting participation in a DOABLE deed. The first deed introduced was led by a very special teen, Aria Devlin, whom Kindred had taught years earlier when directing children's programs at the Brooklyn Society.  Devlin and her friend Lena Gallager interviewed people for a documentary about sexism and feminism. Lena commented, "Speed Deed was a really inspiring experience.  This was my first time at NYSEC so to know there is a kind interesting group of people spreading ethical culture was great."  Aria expressed that "It was amazing to get to interview such a diverse group of people about something that affected them all in different ways." Her current coming-of-age advisor, Nirvani Bissessar, reflected, "I felt empowered and more powerful tonight. I was really impressed with the young people and their spirit for action. And really touched by the intergenerational experience and love." 

The Speed Deed concept was literally dreamed up and scribbled down by NYSEC's youth program developer Audrey Kindred. As the title suggests, there was no sitting still with an idea like this, so a date was made to invite the Ethical community to bring it to life immediately.  Speed Deed made it's debut at NYSEC on Friday evening, March 28, 2014. People of all ages, newcomers and old-timers alike,  came with a curious and open spirit, making it a great success.  "I am leaving this evening feeling I have DONE something, not just talked," expressed NYSEC board member Meg Chapman who attended with Clara her teen age daughter.  "The speed Deed program was ABOVE my wildest imagination.  It was carefully packaged to have enormously important ethical and social content which was enacted in a very clever way so folks had fun while learning and seriously enacting their speed deeds"  said Susan Needles, a NYSEC member. 

While a diverse array of Ethical Culture members and leaders from various societies attended the first Speed Deed, it was a first taste of Ethical Culture for several participants.  "This was a positive, surprisingly educational experience for our entire family... an ageless group for ethical culture,"  said Lina Gonzalez, a newcomer who attended with her husband and 12 year old daughter. Her husband, Juan Carlos, shared, "Speed Deed was a magnificent event. Met new friends, shared ideas and expanded insight into contributing to the welfare of all. Time well spent!"  

"Deed over creed" is an Ethical mantra.  Indeed, DEED is perhaps the ONLY creed of Ethical Culture!  At New York Society for Ethical Culture, Ethics For Teen Leaders put this treasured value to action through a new program titled SPEED DEED. Speed Deed is an activism fair where people gather to learn about and participate in various deeds while having fun and building friendships.  In this forum, all people are invited to discover their activist leanings, through grassroots, creative, humanitarian and environmental projects.   

Other societies are invited to follow suit in creating Speed Deed events. "The program is a model for the movement,"  said Paulo Ribeira, an AEU Leader in Training who attended the event.  As the Speed Deed project continues, it invites activists of every age to create and lead DOABLE DEEDS and have some SERIOUS FUN together. Kindred has created a blog to document the path of the project as it develops: http://speeddeed.blogspot.com/

EthicsForTeens@NYSEC.org.

First-ever SPEED DEED event!

NYSEC's Ethics For Teen Leaders Launching Speed Deed

Teen reporter:  

Sydney Riemer is a senior at the NYC Lab School for Collaborative Studies. 

She has participated in Ethics for Teen Leaders at NYSEC (New York Society For Ethical Culture) since her Freshman year.  She will be attending Johns Hopkins University next year. 

Her interests include sailing, space and environmental science, and guitar.

NYSEC's Speed Deed started out with a potluck dinner where we were asked to sit and eat with people we did not know. As I reluctantly sat down, I looked around at other people sitting down at empty tables. Soon more people came in with their food and sat down with me. We talked about the usual things at first, like how old we are, what schools we go to, etc. After several minutes of generic small talk I soon found out that a teen I was sitting with knew how to computer program, and we became immersed in conversation about how he learned to program. I am learning to program as well, and I think it is very cool that you can do so many things with programming, from making video games to controlling robots. I was even surprised to find out that the teen I talked to actually writes programs for people, and sometimes even gets paid to do so. After that, as a member of NYSEC's Teen Leaders program, I felt compelled to reach out and go to another tablewhere I found another person to converse with, this time a thirteen year old girl, who was also interested in programming. I was surprised at how quickly I had found a common interest with these people. After getting to know some people more I already felt more comfortable. I expected it to be a little awkward, but was surprised at how fun and interesting it was to talk to new people here. 
            After the dinner we entered the Social Hall and started going around to the different Speed Deed tables, learning about the different causes people cared about. One cause that was being promoted was the Dream Act. A few weeks ago I had read an article on the Dream Act, and initially I didn’t think it was right. I wondered why we should give money for immigrants to go to college when there were natural born citizens who couldn’t afford to go to college either. After giving it some more thought at the Speed Deed, and hearing from Abe, a life-long activist, Clara, a teen, and Andra, President of NYSEC, I realized that the Dream Act is in fact a very good idea. These immigrants cannot apply for financial aid like citizens can, and it is not their fault that their parents brought them here. I willingly wrote a letter to Andrew Cuomo concerning the Dream Act. Sending a letter to a government official, or even the act of signing a petition, like I did at various other booths, was pretty empowering. The idea that a small group of people of all ages and walks of life could get together and learn so much about important causes in such a short amount of time was remarkable. I found myself changed in my opinions, like in the situation with the Dream Act. 
              Later we did an activity where the whole group made one circle, and we went around and said our names and something nobody knew about us. One young woman I had talked to earlier in the evening shared that she was HIV positive. I then went and signed up to do the AIDS walk. It felt good to sign up knowing that it would be for someone who was there in the room with me, taking their time to learn about different causes. This experience was new to me, but overall I found it eye-opening.  I look forward going to the next Speed Deed and possibly having my own cause to share and bring awareness to.