US inner cities are rife with violence, racism and poverty. That toxic stress is hard enough for some African Americans growing up there. But when there’s also a national conversation about how much Black Lives Matter, developing a healthy sense of self can be an even greater challenge. The Stream’s Femi Oke and Malika Bilal ask students from Baltimore and Chicago how they’re realising their potential.

In this episode of The Stream, we speak to:

Jordan Willis
13-year-old Baltimore resident

Kristen Willis
Jordan Willis's mother, Baltimore resident

Chima Ikoro @Chima_Naira
Chicago high school student, slam poet

Antwon Funches @Funches_Antwon
Chicago high school student, slam poet


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This episode’s story:
http://stream.aljazeera.com/story/201512092349-0025107

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On The Stream: Young and black in the US


Thumbnail: Children chant with their fists up at the intersection of West North Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue as protestors walk for Freddie Gray around the city in Baltimore, MD on Thursday April 30, 2015. (GETTY/JABIN BOTSFORD/THE WASHINGTON POST)

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