mytown's (Multicultural Youth Tour of What's Now) mission is to use the process of sharing local history to empower young people and build appreciation of urban neighborhoods. 
Since 1995, mytown has trained and employed over 250 low and moderate-income Boston teens in our youth development program where they have learned about the history of their families, neighborhoods, and city and developed skills to create and lead historical walking tours and presentations for nearly 12,000 Boston residents and visitors.
mytown believes that young people and communities can realize the power local history has in increasing youth activism and decreasing the stereotypes that stigmatize urban neighborhoods.
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sharing history, empowering youth |
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why history?
History informs our assumptions and transforms our expectations. Everyday we are involved with collecting our own history. We notice the built world around us, the state of buildings, open spaces, and people. These observations color how we see the world and determine what standards and expectations we hold for our neighborhoods and one another. Learning history and understanding the built environment is more than dwelling on the past. It allows us to develop a game plan for the future based on our ancestors' lessons, struggles and triumphs.
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why young people?
 By using what people, in particular young people, see to challenge who they are, what they have learned, and what they think, mytown provokes people to use their life experiences as a starting point for understanding local, national and global events. By discussing the accomplishments of local change-makers, mytown demonstrates the need for young people to assume community ownership and leadership. Finally, in preserving and sharing a more inclusive multi-ethnic history, mytown guarantees that there will always be access to diverse role models for thought and action.
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