17-year-old Radio Rookie Edwin Llanos has grown up in neighborhoods where police officers stop and search kids all the time -- and a lot of those kids don’t trust cops to help when they're in need. Last year, when Edwin got into a tough situation, he wasn't sure who to turn to.

Radio Rookie Alexis Gordon's dad has been in the Army Reserves since before she was born. He served a tour in Iraq when she was in the 5th grade and was recently deployed again to the war in Afghanistan. 18-year-old Alexis is struggling to understand her dad's decision to stay in the Army and go back to the Middle East.

For Jesus, it’s one of those nights when you’re young that almost sends your life in an entirely different direction. This is a story about the most basic kind of survival.

Ten years ago my high school was rated one of the twelve most dangerous in New York City. Back when I was in junior high I heard it was still like that, that people got stabbed, jumped, even killed. It sounded more like I was going to jail instead of a school. Now that I graduated I see the school as a safer place. But I wasn’t sure if the school actually was safer or because I’m older now I know how to defend myself.

Fourteen-year-old Derrick can be pretty aggressive. A big part of why Derrick loves football is that he can hit people -- without getting in trouble. At home, Derrick gets in trouble a lot, and this often leads him to fight with his brothers.

Michael Lewis, seventeen, is a second generation Trinidadian American who lives in Brooklyn with his parents, siblings, and niece. Michael has idolized his older brother, Junior, his entire life and has followed him into everything -- good and bad, but mostly bad.