Berkley Center

More children are on the move than ever before. Around the world, 40% of those experiencing displacement are under the age of 18. Child migrants are regularly referenced in the news, in policy debates, and in academic discourse—but many of these narratives are not child-centered or informed by young people themselves. Most reports, studies, and policy briefs are written by adults with specific audiences in mind. Children with lived experience are often not consulted or engaged in the process of documenting their realities, which can lead to partial or skewed representations.

What happens when the focus shifts and mobility is considered from the perspective of children who experience displacement and the realities of immigration policy? What might child-informed reporting, research, and advocacy look like in the context of migration, displacement, and asylum? What responsibility do journalists, academics, and advocates have to the young people they “cover”? And how can we become child-sensitive consumers of news and information?

Jaime Joyce, freelance journalist and former executive editor of TIME for Kids; Gabriella Sanchez, research fellow at the Georgetown University Collaborative on Global Children’s Issues; and Patricia Meneses, an actress with Imagination Stage's play Óyeme, joined us for a conversation on the challenges and rewards of writing about, with, and for children on the move in journalism, research, and policy ambits. Gillian Huebner, executive director of the Collaborative on Global Children's Issues, moderated the conversation. A reception followed the in-person event.

This event was a part of the Culture of Encounter Project's working group on child rights and convened by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. Georgetown University is part of the Pulitzer Center’s Campus Consortium network.

Resources

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