In a movement born from the tragic death of a child, it is natural that much of the new activism focuses on the area's young. Mirlanda Moreau Allende gave up foreign travel and a nice allowance at a Fortune 500 company for a job in a cramped office on Northwest 15th Avenue. There, she works for troubled youths and their parents. It's the work of people like Allende, a program coordinator with the African American Council of Christian Clergy, that aims to address the unmet needs many children have at home. At least four times a month, she meets with hundreds of students at Drew elementary and middle schools for motivational workshops.
Topics range from traditional homework help to physical and sexual abuse.
Josie Poitier, best known outside Liberty City as the sponsor of a citywide interdenominational Good Friday breakfast, is a grandmother who spends most of her time doing for others. You have kids who haven't been anywhere but from 63rd Street to 60th Street. Some kids haven't been to Carol City,'' she said.