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Redouane Amine from the Youth Platform East Amsterdam A quick portrait by Mellouki Cadat The youth from East Amsterdam organizes itself through a Platform. Redouane (27) defines himself as ‘a member’ of it. This Youth Platform consists of a core of 15 local residents in the range of age 20-‐27. The group strives toward diversity in the representation of gender and ethnic background. Older people too support actively the Youth Platform. The focus is on social issues. Redouane made name in the neighbourhood as a ’youth community leader’. Redouane: ‘It’s a big honour for me to be known like this. I am a kind of an observer within Mellouki: What is the most important issue facing the Youth the youth group. Nudging Platform today, and why? it in useful directions for Redouane: Joblessness among youth is the biggest issue at this time in East Amsterdam. It has also to d o with a lot of all its members’. As a issues around the issue of unemployment itself. W hat if group's member that everybody got a job? Then nobody w ould do things no-‐one ’wishes the best for the want like criminal activities. others’, Redouane's Furthermore, unemployment has to be analysed in relationship to racism and discrimination. Fighting against endeavour is geared to exclusion and for positive action towards social inclusion support as efficiently as has a huge role to play in tackling the plight of youth in the he can talent's neighbourhood. This has everything to do with setting the deployment. The most agenda to address systematic social, cultural and economic inequalities. important thing in Redouane's eyes is the dynamic among youth in the neighbourhood: giving advice and pushing further. Redouane: ‘If everything goes well within the group, then youth can do great things’. The Youth Platform has presented itself in public last year during a socalled ‘Open House Day’ at the East Amsterdam Borough. Young residents organized the presentation with the support of Rob van Veelen, a quite known local participation broker. Rob is a grass-roots civil servant, deepening in his own way the local democracy. The presentation of the Youth Platform was