Aaron Carr and Aleyanna Grae of the Seattle People’s Fellowship joined The Day With Trae

The Seattle People’s fellowship is a platform which aims to give young people the chance to share ideas and opportunities for community engagement. Aaron Carr and Aleyanna Grae joined The Day With Trae to discuss the fellowship and the Seattle People’s Budget.

Aaron Carr is the fellowship manager, and he is involved in the Participatory Budget to support the involvement of youth in the fellowship. "My staff's role is to support in bringing youth into the process," Aaron explained.

Carr’s role centers around identifying the right audience and strategizing how to approach and engage the youth. "People don't always have strategies; they don't know how to reach them; they don't know where to go or whom to talk to. I'm there to navigate those situations, like talking to schools and community-based organizations and figuring out how we can get the youth involved and get them into spaces where they can share their ideas,” Carr said.

Aleyanna Grae said she joined the fellowship as a result of her desire to affect change in the Black community. "I've been in the Seattle art scene for a minute, and the older I get, the more I want to see safe spaces, and the more I get tired of complaining about the same old thing,” Grae said. "I want to see a change, specifically for the Black community.”

Carr said that the program aims to build trust with community and that advocacy is in place to make the government and community aware of the entire process as well as being accountable to the people involved.

According to Grae, the program offers everyone the opportunity to express themselves. "We want to hear you; it doesn't matter how you sound; you don't have to be wordy; you don't have to do the most, but what are your ideas?" Grae said.

The stated long-term objective of the fellowship is to build a strong networking system for organizations and youth that will foster a stronger and more resilient community. "One of the goals that I'm really passionate about is the learning piece—let's share best practices and talk about the possibility that in the future, youth are always a part of this discussion," Carr said.

Grae thinks of the fellowship as an opportunity to connect, especially with Black women who tend to get left out of the conversation. "I really feel like Black women tend to be left out of the conversation, and as creatives, we tend to be left out of the conversation, so I'm just honored that I get the chance to connect with those who might otherwise feel unrepresented," Grae said.

You can find out more information here: https://pbseattle.org/assemblies/peoplesfellows

Make sure to tune into The Day With Trae every weekday from 11 - 11:30 AM