Reflections from novice youth participatory action researchers: Emphasis on critical gender perspectives

Rooted in multiracial feminist theory, this research investigated the roles of adults engaged in youth participatory action research (YPAR) projects focused on developing critical perspectives of gender, power, and critical hope with the youth of color. Across 10 weeks, two novice adult facilitators documented ethnographic observations (i.e., voice memos) of their experiences collaborating with youth in YPAR. Voice memos were transcribed and coded for emergent themes. Our findings highlight how we deconstructed adultism, prioritized humanizing youth, and integrated critical gender perspectives to understand gender as a mechanism of systemic oppression. Our purpose was to capture moments of breakthroughs, realizations, and tensions as scholars contending with inexperience in YPAR and share our journey with other researchers interested in YPAR. We provide recommendations for adults to develop pathways towards humanity for the youth of color, collective resistance and take social justice action steps towards a critically hopeful future.