In July of 2022, four members of the National Youth Council, one Kaiwhakamana and Jamie, the National Leadership Trainer for NYC headed over to the USA. The following is each of their stories:
Jamie Lee: National Leadership Trainer, National Youth Council
I spent a thrilling few months co-planning the VOYCE Whakarongo Mai USA trip with the four National Youth Council members selected to travel across the hemispheres, and through the hard mahi, I didn’t think much about how I would feel when we finally made our journey. I am a US Citizen but hadn’t been home in nearly three years because of COVID-19. Sometimes those many months away from my loved ones felt like doing hard time. So it surprised me that when we flew into Los Angeles, that I had forgotten how grey the skies are. I quickly remembered that there is nearly always an ugly layer of grey smog in the LA sky. I looked out the window and wondered to myself, whoa, how are these Aotearoa rangatahi going to feel about this? They may have never seen smog before! I also felt a wave of shame run through me while eyeing the grey concrete boxes (businesses, apartment buildings and houses) from the sky. Again, the skies of New Zealand, upon landing, are nothing short of magnificent in every city I have ever flown into. I panicked for a moment and asked myself, why would you bring these beautiful youth into a jungle of smoggy concrete?
Thankfully it didn’t take long for the color and beauty of California to show up. Once we landed, we were greeted by a foster youth advocate who rented a van just to pick us up and safely get us to and from the airport. We met with activists fighting for the rights of foster youth, justice involved youth, gang involved youth, youth in poverty, youth struggling to survive. We went into concrete buildings and saw the beauty and magic spun by community organizers, spaces made for community by community. We saw art from “lifers” and we broke bread on a rooftop with 25 other foster youth who came just to greet the Kiwi youth. They even participated in a snack challenge where they tried our famous pineapple lumps and Jaffas and they shared their favorite chips and Mexican lollies and treats.
Travel has a power to change people – and this was definitely true for our group too. From the Latin fruit vendors on the streets outside of the world famous Broad Museum, to the high level senators that we shadowed in Washington, DC, to the friends who joined us at Disneyland to the taco trucks on our last day, the VOYCE Whakarongo Mai travellers became more knowledgable about what we have in common with strangers from another hemisphere and what we have to teach one another as well. And many memories were made.
For me, the shame I felt looking out the window upon landing dissipated with each act of kindness shown by my friends and colleagues to the group. And each time we met a new organization who shared their stories with us. And each time a rangatahi saw something cool they had never seen before, including a live panda that one of our travellers loves so much! It was a privilege to share my hometown, my home state and my country, good and bad, with Jennifer, Mary-Lynn, Natalia, Sapphire and Didee. The memories we made will never go away. I’m overwhelmed with arohanui.
Diane (Didee) Heta, Kaiwhakamana:
With the feel of COVID-19 looming over our everyday existence the thought of flying to the other side of the world was to say the least scary.
From the safety and seclusion of Aotearoa to a city that holds more people than our entire country was an overwhelming thought, but the opportunity to travel to Los Angeles and Washington DC to support our amazing NYC members was one I could not say no to and an experience I will never forget.
As Kaiwhakamana we work on the ground sharing a thousand different moments with a hundred different young people, but this was something special.
I came into the space six weeks out from the travel date and was impressed by the amount of work that the group had already done to move this from an idea into a reality.
Before we knew it the day arrived and with much trepidation and excitement, we were on a 12-hour flight to LAX.
The next two weeks were a whirlwind of meeting new people, learning new things, eating different food and just soaking it all in wherever we went. Pushing through those moments where our crew were just exhausted, adjusting to new time zones, to just jumping into each meeting with excitement and enthusiasm. Through Jamie’s chosen whānau and her endless line of friends and colleagues we were afforded time, space and opportunity in so many places.
I mean how many of our young people would get to sit face to face with congress-people and senators and speak into our NZ care system and ask questions about the system in the USA? We attended a question-and-answer panel with a group of Californian Youth Commissioners who were so impressed with the girls that they attended the dinner we were invited to, just to spend more time with them. Learning about the extremity of the homeless situation in LA for both young and old, speaking with ‘lifers’ who through a community program were afforded the time, effort, and resources to return home. Young women who are at the forefront of amplifying the voices of other young women who are situations of poverty, youth justice, homelessness, teen parenthood and leaving state care. These are the places where I got to see Jennifer, Mary-Lynn, Sapphire and Natalia in full NYC mode, WOW, I was constantly in that moment of the ‘proud Aunty’.
Aside from the formality of mahi we were able to take in some of the beautiful culture and sights of LA and Washington DC. A visit to an exhibition at the The Broad, Grand Central Station, Dodger Stadium, Santa Monica Pier, the Lincoln Memorial, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Nation Zoo, Hollywood Boulevard and of course Disneyland.
We ate at some of the most iconic places in LA and DC; The Dunbar – opened because African Americans could not stay in hotels in LA, and frequented by people such as BB King, Lena Horne and Billie Holiday. Busboys & Poets – “a place where racial and cultural connections are consciously uplifted” – Ben’s Chili Bowl – opened in 1958 during the time of segregation in a region of LA called ‘black broadway’, when the march on Washington happened in 1963 the Chili Bowl fed thousands of people, same with the Poor People’s Campaign march in 1968.
A highlight for me was being hosted by Angel and Jennifer at Balboa Beach to a home cooked Mexican Meal in front of a firepit.
My time with this group is one I will never forget, I hope to work alongside them more in the future and I can’t wait to see what opportunities open up as a result of this trip.
Natalia, NYC Member:
My trip to the states was such a amazing experience, and one that can’t be forgotten. My time other there was confronting but also rewarding, there were times I struggled and times I succeeded. But most importantly there where times I shared and times I listened, sharing my story was something that I used to struggle with, but as I have had the opportunities to I have been able to share my story in away that can help make a change. While I was in the states we meet with a bunch of amazing people/ groups we got to learn what it was like being in care in America and what the system is like we also got to share what it is like in New Zealand and understand what the similarities there are between the two countries and what we thought needed to change. We spent 5 days in LA and 5 days in Washington DC, Washington DC was my favourite out of the two it felt a little more like home with a little more greenery. Meeting with the congress member was really amazing and seeing what they do in a day was cool. We headed back to LA for another 3 days where we got to do shopping and Disneyland this was a cool experience to do some sightseeing. Disneyland was definitely a fabulous way to end an amazing trip.
Jennifer, NYC Member:
First and foremost, the fact that this trip happened was such a fantastic opportunity and gateway for young care experienced in New Zealand. I am grateful to have been selected, but even if I wasn’t, I am excited to see the start of introducing care experienced youth to the world outside of New Zealand.
I want to acknowledge the work and efforts that went into the trip before the trip even came to be. I was on the travel committee in charge of planning and seeing if this trip was even possible. I jumped at the opportunity as I was passionate about the chance but genuinely didn’t think it would happen. We were under such a short timeframe and were meeting multiple times a week to plan, research as much as possible, and try to solve problems before even knowing if the trip was on, which was a stressful but great learning experience.
Going onto the first week of this exciting US trip! This first week was very challenging. Physically, mentally, socially, and especially emotionally. From the landing, the lack of greenery, and vast amounts of pollution to the shock of skid row and homelessness. We went from our country of 5 million to travel to Los Angeles, a city in California with a population of more than half our country. Everything was new, exciting and scary. Staying at a chic hostel in Downtown LA, we were busy from day 1. Every meal we had was with new people and in between meals were meetings with different organisations. The earliest time we returned to the hostel was 11:30 pm, the average time after midnight. It was full-on and socially draining, but each person we met was special and provided a unique experience for us to learn and share. We needed to learn how to live in a small space, process our feelings, and ensure good relations with each other, all while being away from our safe areas, support people and feelings of familiarity. It is the type of learning you can not acquire without being pushed far out of your comfort zone, a learning experience we were able to have due to this trip.
The second week was the reason for our trip, the Shadow Day Conference. Landing in Washington DC was a relief for many of us kiwis as we were thrilled to see greenery, which reminded us of home. The thrill of staying in a great hotel, providing us with more personal space and meeting all the exceptional staff and delegates attending the conference. The first two days felt very tokenistic as we were applauded for just being from New Zealand; however, after talking to the people, we immediately showed love and learned so much about the care system and how change is made in the US. Shadow Day allows delegates of the conference to shadow a member of congress for the day. I was lucky to have been partnered with Senator Leahy, the senior United States senator from Vermont who serves as the president pro tempore. It was a unique privilege to sit in his office and watch him talk in front of the change makers of America to come back to his office escorted by secret services to have a conversation with me. It was nice to have such a genuine conversation, forgetting that he was third down from the President. As a 2019 Youth MP in New Zealand, it was interesting to compare the conference in the States to my time in Youth Parliament in New Zealand. Our country is so much smaller it is easy to be in a space with our change and lawmakers, whereas in America, the change makers are idolised and made to feel unreachable.
The trip’s most significant takeaway is how privileged we are here in New Zealand. Life isn’t perfect, but we live in a country where change is within reach, our bare minimum is being met, and our youth in care are supported and equipped slowly but surely. Our foster care system now has the attention, and support Americans are still asking for.
I am thankful to VOYCE-Whakarongo Mai for providing this opportunity to me and allowing our foster youth kiwis to dream outside of our small country.
Mary Lynn, NYC Member:
“Kia ora. Thank you for flying with AirNZ. Welcome to the United States of America.”
I can’t believe it. We’re here. I peer out the airplane window as we descend into LA. It’s the biggest city I’ve ever seen. Massive motorways, so many buildings, and houses. It’s huge. I’m so eager to land, explore, and meet Americans. Advocates fighting the same cause, but in another country.
Exhausted and excited, we immersed ourselves in LA. Mahi first, sightseeing second. Instead of visiting the tourist hotspots, we let the locals show us around. Show us their community, their way of living, the world through their eyes, and ultimately their motivation for advocacy. For that, I am grateful. It was real.
After a canceled flight and plans that kept changing, we finally made it to DC. Seeing the greenery, low buildings, and breathing in the fresh air, it felt like home. But then, snap, you’d realise that you were the furthest you’d ever been from home. At the NFYI conference, we opened with He Honore. You could feel the wairua in the room as our harmonies bounced off the walls, wrapping everyone in warmth and love. I felt so distant and yet so connected to Aotearoa. Almost like I had a deep knowing that those who had sent us were also singing with us. Over the next few days, we learnt about US politics, issues in the state care and youth justice systems, and how young advocates, like us, were speaking out across the country. They were fiery, tenacious, and confident in their cause. I remember thinking “I want to bring that energy home”.
It was heartbreaking to see that there was no room in their political system for their indigenous peoples. No acknowledgment, space, understanding, or knowledge. When I look at us kiwis, I see that as one of our strengths. We’re not perfect but it’s something that we are always working on improving as we embed Te Tiriti into our nation.
Before the trip, I wasn’t really sure where I fit in at home. What my cultural identity was or what it even means to be a kiwi. I’ve returned with a greater understanding of what that means, more settled and incredibly grateful to call this place home.
“Kia ora. Thank you for flying with AirNZ. Welcome home.”
Sapphire, NYC Member:
From seeing new places, to meeting wonderful people and learning the difference in systems, America was a wonderful learning opportunity. As well as it helping me grow, I learnt so much about youth justice and foster care. It was beautiful understanding so many organisations concerns as well as goals to help make a change. I’ve never really been a political person but learning how politics work in America was huge and meeting Karen Bass as well as shadowing her, was incredible. I saw her passion as well and understood her goals to support as youth. The best part about this trip for me was when she wanted to know my story, even though i’m not from her country. It was beautiful and i felt so important. (Also, buying shoes was a highlight). Through this trip i came home and wanted to give back to the community i live in. That’s my next step.
I couldn’t be more grateful and happy to be inspired. Because one thing i really noticed while meeting organisations was that they all wanted to give back to their community and see a change.