Moving from Second Sight to Critical Consciousness Building: Using Social Justice Youth Development and Youth Participatory Action Research to Promote Praxis in Out-of-School Time.

This article examines a youth participatory action research (YPAR) project conducted within an out-of-school time (OST) program called CLASP, serving primarily Black youth and other youth of color in Louisville, Kentucky. Using photovoice (PV), field trips, and arts-based strategies, the project aimed to foster critical consciousness development by enabling youth to reflect on their experiences of racism and community inequities and engage in collective social action. Findings highlight the theme of "peeling back the layers," illustrating youth’s evolving understanding of how individual experiences of racism connect to broader systemic and environmental injustices, such as pollution and community disinvestment. The study underscores the potential of OST programs employing social justice youth development (SJYD) approaches and YPAR methods to create flexible, empowering spaces for youth to critically engage with oppression and envision social change, while also noting challenges related to facilitator identity and power dynamics.