Boys and Girls Night Out held again as part of Alachua County Empowerment Revival
It was a full house at this year’s Alachua County Empowerment Revival’s Boys and Girls Night Out where children were given the opportunity to share their thoughts on current matters and provide solutions to help their peers.
The three-day revival began on Wednesday at DaySpring Baptist Church at 1945 NE Eighth Ave. and the theme for the program was “Conflict Resolution.”
“This is the time where the children fellowship with us and we fellowship with them,” said the Rev. Dr Marie Herring, pastor of the church, as she welcomed those attending the program. “They give us information and we give them information to help them.”
Herring’s welcome was followed by an invocation prayer by the Rev. Dr. Debra King, pastor of St. Luke AME Church in Alachua.
“May every child who speaks, empower them with your glory,” King said. “For every parent, bless them because they are in the right place. Thank you for giving them their right mind.”
A highlight of the program was Caleb Little and Joshua Morrison being recognized as winners of the Judge Stephan P. Mickle Essay Contest that is held in honor of the late U.S. District Judge Stephan P. Mickle, who in 1965 became the first Black to receive an undergraduate degree from the University of Florida and in 1998 became the first Black to be confirmed as a judge in the U.S. Northern District of Florida, of which he became the chief judge in 2009. He died in 2021.
Little and Morrison were introduced as winners of the essay contest by Evelyn Mickle, the late judge’s widow. They wrote their essays based on how the late judge’s legacy has affected their lives.
Other highlights included performances by students from Caring and Sharing Learning School, youth singers from the Star Center Theatre and dancers from Expressive Song and Dance.
The youth panel discussion included elementary, middle and high school students, and was moderated by Bishop Christopher Stokes, senior pastor of New Beginnings Worship Center in Micanopy.
“When we sit down and try to work it out, that’s mediating,” Stokes said. “What we have moved away from is the ability to sit down and talk to one another. A lot of the time when we talk, we never include them (youth) in the conversation.”
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The panelists were Dorian Brown, a third-grader at Caring and Sharing Learning School; Niyah Parker, a fourth-grader at Caring and Sharing Learning School; MiYonni Carter, a sixth-grader at Lincoln Middle School; Caden Hollinger, an eighth-grader at The Rock School; Bethany Anderson, an 11th-grader at Gainesville High School and Little, a senior at P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School.
The panel was asked to define bullying and describe what they would do if they knew someone who was being bullied.
“Bullying is when you’re not being nice to someone and they are saying mean things to you,” Parker said. “I stand up for them (victims of bullying) and tell the teacher.”
“Bullying is when you hurt someone physically and verbally,” Brown said.
The middle and high school students said cyber bullying is more prevalent than physical and verbal bullying amongst their peers.
“I make sure to talk to my friends about that,” Carter said. “I don’t want to say anything mean to somebody because I don’t want their blood on my hands.”
The next question was about mass shootings happening on a national scale and the gun violence happening on a local scale.
The panelists said it is important for members of the community to restore families, get involved with their children, remove “ghost guns,” which are unregulated and untraceable firearms, increase access to mental health services and talk more to their neighbors.
“You show me who you hang around with and I’ll show you your future,” Stokes said. “When you value who you are, you will know how to value others.”
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Bullying topic of youth panel discussion as part of revival in G'ville
