"I am a life-long resident of Bushwick, Brooklyn - a beautiful community besieged by gun violence" - Jesus Gonzalez.

*Mr. Gonzalez will be live chatting about gun control and school safety with Radio Rookies and Youth Radio from 1-2pm.

WNYC Radio Rookie Danielle shares her story about not being able to be honest with her family in Congo about how hard life is in the United States. She's joined by Kim Nichols of the African Services Committee to talk about why it's so difficult to tell the truth about challenges.

Bree Person, Radio Rookie, talks about having sickle cell anemia and what the diagnosis means for her and her family. Pediatrician Suzette Oyeku also joins us to explain what sickle cell is, and what developments in treatment mean for those who have the inherited blood disorder.

Dr. Oyeku is a pediatrician at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore and on the faculty of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University, and serves as project director for the Working to Improve Sickle Cell Healthcare program at the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality.

Two Radio Rookie reporters got a chance to sit down with Police Commissioner Ray Kelly to discuss the tactics of his police force and its impact in the community.

Five Radio Rookies walked the streets of the Bronx recently to learn more about how residents of the borough, which is 90 percent black and Latino, interact with the police. They then sat down the the city's police commissioner to ask him about community relations.

Growing up, my parents used to tell me to stay away from the projects. They said they were dangerous, and they’re right: about 20 percent of violent crime happens in public housing.

Radio Rookies is a New York Public Radio initiative that provides teenagers with the tools and training to create radio stories about themselves, their communities and their world.

I was shocked to hear about what happened to Trayvon Martin, but I wasn’t surprised that he was targeted because he was a black kid in a hooded sweatshirt. I wear a hoodie everyday, and I know when I walk through certain neighborhoods and see a cop that I’m probably going to get stopped.

Half of Radio Rookie Alicia Martinez's family members are U.S. citizens. The other half is not. Her parents and older sister came to the U.S. illegally before she was born. Alicia knows – from her sister – how hard it is to grow up in the U.S. without legal papers, but she also finds it stressful to be the lucky one: the daughter with all the opportunities. As one of three U.S. citizens in her family, Alicia has struggled to meet her parents' expectations and overcome the guilt she feels that her hardworking sister’s life is so limited.

Coming on June 15th the first in our latest batch of Radio Rookies stories, which will air every Wednesday and Thursday for the rest of the month.  First up, we'll hear from Alicia, who comes from a mixed-status home, meaning that half of her family are U.S. citizens, the other half are not.  Some people consider her an "anchor baby", but Alicia just feels confused about the expectations her parents have of her, as a citizen, and the guilt she feels that her sister lives under the fear of deportation.  And on Thursday a story about Facebook drama....  

Like many 18 year olds, Judith Rudge had trouble fitting in. She wrestled with her identity until she discovered a powerful new vehicle of expression: the poetry of hip hop. With the help of the Radio Rookie program at New York Public Radio that trains teenagers how to become ...