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With the D.C. Council soon starting a series of performance oversight and budget hearings, several dozen high school students recently engaged council members and other elected officials in conversation about their fiscal year 2026 budget priorities.
Logan Thompson, a senior at School Without Walls (SWW) and member of Mikva Student Council, said that, even with significant declines in violent crime, she and her peers remain anxious about their well-being. She touted the annual D.C. Girls Coalition Youth Town Hall as an opportunity to raise the issue of public safety.
“The depth of this issue is important for my community. Our primary goal is to…alleviate the loss and feelings of hurt that gun violence caused,†said Logan, who, in her capacity as president of SWW’s Black Student Union, organizes her peers around school conditions and equity initiatives.
For three hours, Logan and other young people spoke candidly about their academic and social experiences during a resource fair, along with breakout sessions and an open mic at Trinity ²İİ®tv University’s Main Hall in Northeast.

Just like Logan anticipated, a handful of council members and D.C. State Board of Education (SBOE) representatives sat within earshot ready to respond.
“I want elected officials to hear youth voices and hear our passion,†Logan, a Southwest resident, told The Informer. “Time is very important for youth. With D.C. being a small town, and us being fed [images of] crime, I can’t see the decline in violence.â€
A Night Where Young People Exercised Their Right to Be Heard
Elected officials who attended the D.C. Black Girls Coalition Town Hall included: D.C. Councilmembers Robert White (D-At large), Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2), and Matt Frumin (D-Ward 3), along with SBOE Representatives Ben Williams (Ward 1), Eric Goulet (Ward 3), Robert Henderson (Ward 5), and LaJoy Johnson-Law (Ward 8).
At the height of the program, those officials listened, and later accompanied groups of students to the front of Main Hall’s auditorium where youth spoke about the need for clean water, food security, mental health, safe passage and employment.
Earlier in the evening, participants ate and spoke among one another before perusing through resources and, later, listening to each other’s insights at the main town hall.
Amid spoken word and dance performances, adults in the space often found difficulty encouraging youth participation. Christina Hanson, executive director of the Anacostia chapter of Community, Advocacy and Resources for Education (CARE) ²İİ®tv, D.C., took to the mic and stressed the importance of the annual town hall.
She went as far as mentioning that 564 out of 566 public and public charter schools have experienced at least shooting within a four-block radius from their location.
“There are those of us who need to hear from you. We need you to speak your truth to us,†said Hanson, a former D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) employee. “People go into spaces with assumptions about what is good for you, so I’m excited for this opportunity to hear from you… I left my good government job to be in spaces to advocate and find the people, policies and funding to get what you need.â€
A D.C. Council Committee of the Whole (COW) meeting earlier in the week allowed council members to set the rules for what will be a slew of oversight hearings this winter. As hundreds of residents, advocates and advisory neighborhood commissioners prepare to testify at the John A. Wilson Building and online, the council unanimously approved a document that almost included a provision limiting the number of people who could testify on behalf of an organization at a hearing.
On Jan. 22, no limits existed for young people who wanted to make their voice heard.
Amina Cotton, a senior at Templeton Academy in Northwest and D.C. Action youth leader, said she came to the D.C. Girls Coalition Youth Town Hall with housing insecurity on her mind.
“We want to make sure the homeless can access resources like everyone else,†Amina told The Informer.
Upon joining D.C. Action last fall, Amina identified housing insecurity, out-of-school time programming, and summer youth employment as her issues of priority. As she continues to shed light on her concerns, Amina said that she doesn’t take her platform for granted.
“Not everyone has the opportunity to be a voice for people who can’t speak up,†she said. “I knew I would enjoy it. I needed the experience of seeing different faces and knowing we would make an impact.â€
Other program participants on Jan. 22 included Black Swan Academy, Critical Exposure, and YMCA National Capital Area.
During the town hall, a male student, whose identity The Informer kept anonymous to protect his academic standing, recounted often not seeing water fountains with new filters at his award-winning, application-based public high school.
“We stress about bringing water from our house and the store because our school water is nasty,†the student said. “We live in the capital city of the strongest and most influential country in the world, so why are we dealing with dirty water?â€
Even the adults weighed in on what they believed to be D.C.’s top budget priorities.
As she doled out information to young people, youth advocacy specialist Freweyni Asress told The Informer that nonprofits, like the one she represented at the D.C. Girls Coalition Youth Town Hall, need government support, now more than ever, to address issues affecting young people and their families.
“Families coming to us when a child has been sexually assaulted… are experiencing poverty and intersecting violence,†said Asress, a facilitator of Safe Shores’ client advocacy initiative.
Asress said the initiative, made possible through the passage of the , positioned Safe Shores to better help young people and understand underlying issues threatening their livelihood.
“Youth need the support to feel safe going to school and [if needed] getting the proper accommodations,†Asress told The Informer. “And teens want more support groups. They want connections with other youth who’ve gone through what they’ve gone through, and access to services beyond therapy.â€
Two Council Members Talk ²İİ®tv the Elephant in the Room
Whether advocates, young and old, see their demands reflected in the finalized Fiscal Year 2026 budget depends on whether D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D), the D.C. Council, and Office of the Chief Financial Office can rectify what appears to be a conflict between expanding D.C.’s safety net and practicing fiscal responsibility.
Frumin said just as much as the D.C. Girls Coalition Youth Town Hall wrapped up on Jan. 22.
“The needs are enormous and part of what we’re going to do [have to do] is do better with the resources that we have,†Frumin told The Informer. “We’re in a tough situation that could get worse depending on what the federal government does. Some things make a difference. As some things are not working the way they should, we have to use our resources in a targeted way.â€
White, who collaborated with D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) around the launch of a council office that identifies cost-saving opportunities, spoke briefly to students about the emergency legislation the D.C. Council passed last year to strengthen emergency rental assistance approval requirements, and save D.C.’s affordable housing ecosystem.
Later, while speaking to the Informer, White expressed his frustration that the budget entity, funded for Fiscal Year 2025, hasn’t been fully launched.
“I put something forward and I want them to move more quickly,†White said. “I don’t know the timeline, but I know they’re pursuing it.â€
During the town hall and breakout session portions of the program, White heard concerns about the lack of vocational training opportunities and affordable housing — issues that he’s attempted to tackle in years past.
The fight in those areas continues, he told The Informer.
“A number of [young people] mentioned housing insecurity so we have to show up in that space,†White said. “If they want to work and get paid, we have to get them to work and explore their interests. We have to be more disciplined about the programs that are not working.â€