[Air-L] [Inclusion] #YesWeCode Initiative - & Prince

[Becky Lentz]

This may be of interest to some AOIR folksŠ



>#YesWeCode (http://www.yeswecode.org) is an initiative that seeks to
>mobilize tech and social justice leaders to connect 100,000
>low-opportunity young adults to the skills and experiences they need to
>access high-paying careers in technology. CNN commentator Van Jones
>founded the #YesWeCode initiative with the support of Prince, who passed
>away yesterday.
>
>http://www.yeswecode.org/prince
>
>Jones elaborated on Prince's involvement at the 20th Anniversary Essence
>Festival:
>
>"After the Trayvon Martin verdict I was talking to Prince and he said,
>'You know, every time people see a young black man wearing a hoodie,
>they think, he's a thug. But if they see a young white guy wearing a
>hoodie they think, oh that might be Mark Zuckerberg. That might be a
>dot-com billionaire.'"
>
>"I said, 'Well, yeah, Prince that's true but that's because of racism.'
>And he said, 'No, it's because we have not produced enough black Mark
>Zuckerbergs. That's on us. That's on us. To deal with what we're not
>doing to get our young people prepared to be a part of this new
>information economy.'"
>
>Since July 2014, YesWeCode has been focused on three activities:
>
>Communicate: In partnership with Oakland, Calfornia-based organizations,
>#YesWeCode launched an interactive website with a powerful search tool
>that enables users to find local coding education resources. This tool
>also helps users find local events and learn more about coding
>opportunities.
>
>Convene: #YesWeCode has convened 100+ coding practitioners and
>stakeholders in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and New Orleans.
>#YesWeCode partnered with Qeyno Labs to host a Start-Up Weekend
>hackathon in February 2015, focused on uplifting young African-American
>men and boys.
>
>Catalyze: In July, #YesWeCode launched at the 20th Anniversary ESSENCE
>Festival with a youth-focused hackathon and a headline performance by
>Prince, before a festival audience of 500,000 people.
>
>Just seemed appropriate to post this.
>
>---
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>Ms. Jayne Cravens MSc
>Portland, Oregon, USA
>
>The web site - http://www.coyotecommunications.com
>The email - jc at coyotecommunications.com
>Me on Twitter, other social networks, & my blog:
>http://www.coyotecommunications.com/me/jayneonline.shtml
>
>Author: The Last Virtual Volunteering Guidebook
>More about the book, and how to buy it
>(as a paperback or as an e-book):
>http://www.energizeinc.com/store/1-222-E-1
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