This was such a tough case to hear about in the media, the riots and race issue that keep occurring in our society is terrible. I wonder if it was a black officer that shot Michael Brown would what happened In Ferguson have occurred, or if it was a white officer who shot a while person. Either scenario it is a terrible loss. I feel like the media keeps the hate and racism alive in our society. So many historical figures fought and lost their lives to allow races come together. Even though any race can go anywhere and attend any place they choose there is still this stigmatism alive and brewing.

Local SEIU 509 is demanding change from the new governor elect Charlie Baker in regards to human service workers and change in helping people.

A bomb (upper left) falls on an Islamic State position in eastern Kobani, Syria. during an airstrike by the U.S. led coalition on Saturday, November 8. ISIS militants and Syrian Kurdish fighters have been battling for control of the city near the Turkish border, and the United States and several Arab nations have been bombing ISIS targets to take out the group's ability to command, train and resupply its fighters.

By Mary Ann Price Dan Cummings enjoyed playing sports as he grew up in Hyde Park, especially football and baseball. He played defensive tackle and was on the kick return team at Xaverian Brothers High School, which won the MIAA Division 1 Super Bowl in 1998.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/10/30/ray-flynn-and-others-recall-thomas-menino-boston-longest-serving-mayor-who-died-today/lJYvDqqAey8VjQqzT7dYjO/story.html I chose this small video to share because we have read about advocating or people that cannot advocate that well for them. Tom Menino was an advocate for the entire city. He advocated for everyone regardless of their circumstances. He is someone who truly cared about the well being of his city and the job he did. He was always there lending a hand and getting dirty when it needed to happen. He wanted a better city and he spent 20 years trying to make it the best city around.

By Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA TODAY When it comes to religion, the USA is now land of the freelancers. The percentage. of people who call themselves in some way Christian has dropped more than 11% in a generation. The faithful have scattered out of their traditional bases: The Bible Belt is less Baptist. I found it interesting that many religious groups are fading as time goes on. People are less likely to pinpoint a certain religious group that they are affiliated with. I know the Catholic Community took a bit hit in members being proud to say they are catholic when many altar boys were molested by some of their priests. http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/religion/2009-03-09-american-religion-ARIS_N.htm

Charities have to be careful when they lobby for something that they believe in or want. However, they have to be careful not to lobby and cross the lines on how they lobby. Their status as non-profit could be jeopardized if they are not careful.

Taking on many forms, civic engagement at SMFA permeates faculty curriculum, student initiatives and additional programming. MFA have incorporated art and civic engagement together. They have connected art to important social values in communities that are important to them. They hope that a program like this will gain support and have participants become active in the community. The hopes of a program like this are changing the world in a positive way.

CENTRAL FALLS, R.I. If you were to assemble a city from scratch, you would need a few things to make this place of yours more than just a functioning municipality; to make it a community. The city of Central Falls, Rhode Island is in the process of not having a library that they can call their own. There is no place for kids to go and rent books, no place for high school kids to go and use the computers or have a quiet place for homework assignment, and no place for unemployed adults to have access to computers to look for employment. The building could be boarded up along with so many other building in the city. There are no funds to keep the building open and no money to pay the library staff. Volunteers have stepped up to staff the library on a few select days with only a few hours. This gives people the opportunity to at least have access to the library a few times a week. The people that have stepped up are not being paid and doing it all on their free time. It is nice to see that there are some people who believe in helping others and trying to make a difference in their community

9/26/14
http://www.civicyouth.org/featured-new-study-dispels-stereotypes-about-young-voters-ahead-of-2012-elections/

Engaging America's youth can be tricky. The youth are willing to help but not all of them are willing to give it their all. They may pick one area that appeals to them but will not pick more than one area. If we could engage the youth to participate on more than one area the worked can grow successfully. Here is a list of where the youth are spending their time.
The Broadly Engaged (21% of youth) fill many different leadership roles;
* The Political Specialists (18%) are focused on voting and other forms of political activism;
* The Donors (11%) give money but do little else;
* The Under-Mobilized (14%) were registered to vote in 2010 but did not actually vote or participate actively;
* The Talkers (13%) report discussing political issues and are avid communicators online, but do not take action otherwise; and
* The Civically Alienated (23%) hardly engage at all.

The positive aspect of today's youth is that the majority of them are involved in some form.

Cincinnati Public Schools and Ohio's State Board of Education know that parents and families are children's first and most important teachers. Partnerships among families, schools and communities that are child-centered and family-strengthening will guide and motivate students to be productive citizens in a global society.

"This may not mean anything to somebody who is accustomed to civic action or to somebody who has always recognized the power they have. But for me, being a poor black girl from Baltimore, knowing I helped pass two pieces of important legislation makes me feel invincible."-Taikira White, The Intersection A young girl from Baltimore became active in civic engagement due to seeing kids like herself not go very far or even worse die. These two girls took a stand when most people just want to look the other way. It is easier to just leave things the way they are instead of standing up and trying to make a change for something that you believe in or think is right, What an inspiration these two young ladies are, they fought for what they wanted and are not only doing something for themselves they are helping their community and trying to make it a better place.