Mytown
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Mytown, an acronym for Multicultural Youth Tour of What's Now, is a Boston-based youth organization engaging young people in learning about and teaching others about the local history of their urban neighborhood.
[edit] History and mission
Mytown was founded in 1995 by Karilyn Crockett, with a mission to "use the process of sharing local history to empower young people and build appreciation of urban neighborhoods. Mytown believes that young people and communities can realize the power local history has in increasing youth activism and decreasing the stereotypes that stigmatize urban neighborhoods." Since the organization's founding, mytown has trained nearly 300 low and moderate-income Boston teenagers in learning the history of their neighborhood, community and city. Once trained, members lead historical walking tours of Boston's neighborhoods to almost 10,000 Boston residents and visitors annually.
[edit] Founding idea
Founder Karilyn Crockett, as a young African-American girl, felt disconnected from Boston, the city in which she was raised. One afternoon, Karilyn went on a walking tour of Roxbury and the South End. On that tour she learned about the history of the Pullman Porters, Tent City Settlement, and about the thousands of migrants and immigrants from all over the world that had built and transformed Boston over the past 350 years. Crockett's tour was transformative; and for the first time she felt that Boston was indeed a city shaped by the experiences of her family and neighbors, a place that she could truly call "my town."
[edit] External link
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Categories: Historic preservation | African American culture | American culture | History of New England | Cultural heritage | Non-profit organizations based in the United States | Boston culture | Environmental design | Architectural history | History of Boston | Community building | Massachusetts stubs
