Current Activities

 Ubuntu Youth Circles provide African immigrant young people with culturally grounded spaces to strengthen identity, relationships, emotional wellness, leadership, and community participation. Activities recognize that many young people are learning to live within multiple cultural expectations at home, in school, and in public life. 

Program Activities

• Facilitated conversations about identity, belonging, family expectations, and life in the United States.
• Mentoring relationships with trained adults from African immigrant backgrounds.
• Workshops on communication, emotional wellness, conflict, substance use prevention, violence prevention, storytelling, and leadership.
• Opportunities for civic learning and public participation.
• Cultural learning and intergenerational conversations.

Intended Result

• Stronger cultural identity and self understanding.
• Healthier relationships with peers, family members, and trusted adults.
• Greater confidence in communicating needs and making decisions.
• Stronger leadership and community participation.
• Reduced isolation and improved access to support.

 Ubuntu Family and Community Circles bring parents, youth, elders, and community members together to discuss family life, cultural continuity, intergenerational relationships, and the experience of building a life in the United States. The circles respect African values while allowing participants to examine how family practices may need to respond to a different social and institutional setting.

Program Activities

• Quarterly family and community gatherings.
• Parenting Across Cultures conversations and workshops.
• Intergenerational dialogue involving parents, young people, and elders.
• Cultural performances, storytelling, and community learning.
• Information and referrals related to schools, health care, housing, employment, immigration, and other community needs.

Intended Results

• Stronger communication between parents, youth, and elders.
• Greater understanding of cultural and generational differences.
• Improved access to reliable information and community resources.
• Stronger community relationships and mutual support.
• Reduced family stress and earlier response to emerging concerns.

 AFRISOTA helps African immigrant community members understand their rights, find reliable information, communicate with institutions, and participate in decisions affecting their families. We also document recurring barriers and work with partners to pursue practical institutional improvements. 

Program Activities

• Know Your Rights and public systems workshops.
• Community conversations about schools, health care, housing, employment, immigration, public safety, and civic participation.
• Information, referral, and limited navigation assistance.
• Community listening sessions that identify recurring institutional barriers.
• Research and advocacy informed by community experience.

Intended Results 

• Community members better understand available rights, responsibilities, and resources.
• Families communicate more effectively with schools, agencies, and service providers.
• Recurring barriers are documented and presented to relevant institutions.
• African immigrants participate more fully in civic and public decisions.

Note:  AFRISOTA provides general information, referrals, and community support. AFRISOTA does not provide legal representation or legal advice. People seeking legal advice should consult a qualified attorney or an accredited legal service provider. 

 AFRISOTA works with schools, health care providers, nonprofits, public agencies, law enforcement, and other institutions seeking to serve African immigrants with greater dignity, cultural understanding, and effectiveness. Training draws upon community experience, research, and facilitated dialogue.

Training Topics

• Understanding the diversity of African immigrant communities.
• Culturally informed communication with youth, parents, and elders.
• Family roles, authority, identity, and intergenerational expectations.
• Common institutional barriers and sources of misunderstanding.
• Community voice, trust, dignity, and respectful service.
• Practical review of policies, procedures, and public communication.

Training Format

• Staff workshops.
• Youth and parent panels.
• Community listening sessions.
• Facilitated consultations.
• Conference or classroom presentations.

Our Stories, Told in Our Voices.

African immigrants should have the opportunity to represent their own lives, cultures, families, challenges, and contributions. The Ubuntu Storytelling series records and shares stories that preserve community memory, strengthen identity, and help the wider public understand the diversity of African immigrant experiences.

Share Your Story

Your experience may help another person feel understood, preserve knowledge for a younger generation, or help an institution recognize a problem it has overlooked. 

AFRISOTA welcomes stories from youth, parents, elders, professionals, artists, community leaders, and families.

Submitting an interest form does not commit you to a public interview. An AFRISOTA representative will explain the purpose, recording process, consent choices, and how the material may be used before any recording takes place.

Story Consent

 AFRISOTA seeks informed verbal or written permission before recording or publishing identifiable stories. Participants may ask questions, discuss privacy concerns, and decline participation. Additional permission is required for minors. AFRISOTA may decline a proposed story when it cannot provide an appropriate or safe process.