Yes Loitering
2017-Present
The Bronx, NY
Yes Loitering is a research and design project, done in collaboration with teenagers ages 15-18 from the South Bronx, in which we investigated the ways young people are targeted and criminalized in public spaces and developed design and policy ideas on how to create youth-powered spaces that are safe and welcoming to teens. Over the course of four months in 2017, we conducted group discussions, interviewed experts in youth development, urbanism, and the criminal justice system, observed existing places where youth hang out, and initiated conversations, surveys, and workshops with teens all over the city.
The first phase of the project culminated with a public presentation in June 2017 and a project website (www.theyesloiteringproject.com) that lays out the issues we were investigating, our ideas for creating more youth-affirming public spaces, and supplemental research material.
In the second phase of the project (completed in 2018), we explored how teens are made to feel unwelcomed in stores, especially teens of color, and created a bilingual resource manual for businesses to improve their practices to be more inclusive of young people.
Community collaborator:
WHEDco
Phase One Youth Researchers/Designers:
Monserrat Ambrosio, Natalia Baez, Omar Campos, Giselle Rivas, Joe Nicholas Ureña, and Mario Ynfante
Phase One of the Yes Loitering Project was supported by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature with fiscal sponsorship from the Architectural League of New York.
Phase Two Youth Researchers/Designers:
Melkyn Acosta and Monserrat Ambrosio
Phase Two manual was commissioned by WHEDco. Major support was provided by the Neighborhood 360° Program, created by the NYC Department of Small Business Services to identify, develop, and launch commercial revitalization projects in partnership with local stakeholders.
Project Support from WHEDco staff:
Marco Castro, Kevin Contreras, Alix Fellman, Gabriela Gonzalez, and Kerry McLean
