Wrestling Program Empowers Young People

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BY TIA CAROL JONES

The young people are participants in the wrestling program, Beat the Streets Chicago, which started in 1994, with a mission to empower youth through wrestling. It serves young people between the ages of 4 and 23. In 2018, Mile Powell became the Executive Director.

Beat the Streets is the largest wrestling club in Chicago. Currently, there are 3,000 wrestlers who participate in the program, which includes mentoring and tutoring, as well as workshops.

“We help the kids with their classes, we help them find colleges, we help them get into trade schools, we serve them to help them find whatever path they want in life and give them a safe place to explore what they want to achieve,” said Justin Hames, marketing and media coordinator for Beat the Streets Chicago. During the summer, Beat the Streets Chicago has summer enrichment camp where young people take classes.

Demetria Griffin has been participating in Beat the Streets’ program for a couple of months. The 13-year- old came to watch her cousins wrestle when a coach suggested she try out wrestling. As a girl wrestler, Griffin said sometimes it’s difficult wrestling with the boys, but she likes being a girl wrestler. She’s being learning different techniques. Her favorite move is the double leg. While she didn’t win her first dual, she did learn what to do differently to improve her outcome in future duals.

Axel Rodriguez, 12, has been participating with Beat the Streets Chicago for about two or three years. He has been around wrestling his entire life. His father and uncle also wrestled.

“I’ve known Boyd for a few years of my wrestling career and he’s an amazing coach. I just love being a part of this club, because I’ve been to a few clubs, but in this club, I get treated like family and I get treated with respect,” he said.

Rodriguez has been able to put his energy into wrestling. Once he stepped foot on the mat, he knew wrestling was something he wanted to do for the rest of his life. He said wrestling has changed his life and will always be part of his life. He recommends other young people who want to start wrestling to try it out.

“It’s mentally tough and I know a lot of the lessons I’m learning here, I’m going to take with me for the rest of my life,” he said, adding his favorite move is the collar steal, where the person is in a collar tie and the person throws their arm around and ends up on top of their opponent.

John Datu, 18, wanted to join Beat the Streets Chicago because he wanted to improve in wrestling. He has been with the program for a year and a half. Participating in the program also has made him improve as a person, building the circle around him and building his confidence. It was suggested that he get into wrestling as a high school freshman while he was on his high school’s football team.

“The most important part for me is the determination, the grit and overall being committed to something you didn’t like at first and eventually, four years later, I’m still wrestling,” he said.

Datu will be attending Elmhurst College in the Fall to study Kinesiology. He said the earlier young people join Beat the Streets Chicago, the better their wrestling career will be. He has learned a lot of new tricks and said participating in the program can get young people away from things they don’t want to regret in the future.

For more information about the Beat the Streets Chicago, visit www.btschicago.org.

ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL ENCOURAGES EPA TO STRENGTHEN PROPOSED POLLUTION STANDARDS FOR LIGHT- AND MEDIUM-DUTY VEHICLES

Chicago— Attorney General Kwame Raoul called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to adopt more stringent greenhouse gas (GHG) and criteria pollutant standards for light- and medium-duty vehicles from model years 2027 through 2032.

Raoul, as part of a coalition of 26 states and cities, submitted a comment letter to the EPA regarding its proposed standards for GHG and criteria pollutants, which are six common air pollutants that present serious health and environmental risks, for light- and medium-duty highway vehicles, including cars, sport utility vehicles (SUVs), pickup trucks and vans.

In their letter, Raoul and the coalition emphasize that the EPA’s proposal would lead to measurable progress – for instance, a 56% reduction in GHG emissions levels from the model year 2026 levels for light-duty vehicles, and a 44% reduction in GHG emissions levels from the model year 2026 levels for medium-duty vehicles. However, the coalition urges the EPA to move forward with more stringent GHG and criteria pollutant standards, which are feasible to achieve by using technological advancements that are already widely used.

“The EPA’s greenhouse gas emissions and criteria pollution standards for light-duty and medium-duty highway vehi- citizennewspapergroup.com cles are critically important in reducing carbon emissions and protecting the environment,” Raoul said. “I am committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the impact of climate change throughout Illinois. Strengthening these regulations is critical to supporting states’ efforts to protect public health and the environment.”

The transportation sector is the largest source of GHG emissions in the United States, with light-duty vehicles being the largest contributor within that sector. In addition, lightand medium-duty vehicles are a significant source of criteria pollutants, such as fine particulate matter and nitrogen oxides, that detrimentally affect air quality. Both the impacts of climate change and poor air quality disproportionately harm environmental justice communities.

In their letter, the attorneys general and cities: Emphasize that strong emissions standards are necessary to protect the environment and public health. From extreme heat to wildfires to drought, the coalition notes that we are already experiencing the devastating impacts of climate change, which will continue to mount and compound with rising concentrations of GHGs in the atmosphere.

Detail that the technologies necessary to reduce GHGs

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