AYO celebrates 10th anniversary

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This article was published 09/03/2020 (2203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Aboriginal Youth Opportunities (AYO) was created 10 years ago in response to the ongoing removal of services and supports in northwest Winnipeg, which ultimately left young people in a resource desert.

Based in the North End, AYO runs several programs and events pertaining to mentorship, leadership, safety, arts and culture, education, and more.

“AYO came to be in the spring of 2010 when Indigenous young people, who had built strong relationships with one another, saw that the spaces and programs where we were building these relationships were all leaving us. And we were frustrated that it was always funders or adults that were deciding what opportunities youth had,” said Michael Redhead Champagne, one of the original founders.

“We asked all of the young people, ‘What should AYO be?’ And all of the young people said that we can’t be a one-off event; AYO has to be an ongoing volunteer group akin to a gang but instead of doing crime we volunteer and be helpers to one another.”

Youth engagement at AYO is centred around ARROWS, which stands for Access, Resources, Relationships, Opportunities, Welcome, Support.

“And we use that strategy now to build and evaluate the programming that we do to provide more opportunities for Indigenous youth, to build relationships that are healthy and meaningful, but also so they can network with people in different sectors and also create employment opportunities that are value-based, respecting the values of those young people,” Champagne, 32, said.

Examples of AYO’s work include Inner City Voices, a weekly show aired on the University of Winnipeg’s campus radio station, CKUW 95.9 FM; Meet Me @ the Bell Tower, an anti-violence community rally; and Fearless R2W, which focuses on education and advocacy around child welfare.

“AYO exists to create spaces that are safe for Indigenous young people to share their gifts and share their voices,” Champagne said.

This mentality is what led Kakeka Thundersky, 21, to become involved with AYO. Around 2014, she met Champagne and other AYO members at an event held by Voices: Manitoba’s Youth in Care Network.

“At that time I was a youth in care, and I was kind of just used to adults making all of the decisions for me. I was used to having my voice silenced a lot of the time, not really knowing what’s going on. But then when they came they kind of helped me figure out how to utilize my voice and take control of my own narrative. They helped a lot with system navigating and just really helped me plant my feet,” Thundersky said.

Engaging the younger generation is something AYO members hope to continue.

“The difference in the young leaders today versus the young leaders 10 years ago is that 10 years ago we had to walk much more softly; 10 years ago we were a lot more timid; 10 years ago we felt like we had to ask permission to exist, we had to ask permission to go into spaces, we were always asking and we always felt like we were in a deficit to others and that didn’t feel good,” Champagne said.

“I think AYO and our message is more important now in 2020 than it was even in 2010 because now Indigenous young people need to know that they don’t have to apologize for who they are, they don’t have to apologize for wanting clean water, they shouldn’t have to apologize for speaking out about human rights violations. And so my hope is that Indigenous young people will learn from AYO that they can be unapologetically themselves.”

AYO will be holding a 10th anniversary celebration on Tues., March 17 at Circle of Life Thunderbird House (715 Main St.) between 6 and 8 p.m.

“We want to invite anyone that has been a part of the movement over the last 10 years to come and participate,” Champagne said.

“This event will be free, there will be food, it will be fun, and there will be family,” Thundersky added.