Nyya Sistrun is at it again. She did it before, but she got sidetracked by a little family matter. Now with tot in tow, she is back to squeezing out spare moments for her avocation: giving teens a voice.

Sistrun was a producer at Black Entertainment Television in 2003 when the network cancelled the popular “Teen Summit,” a discussion-and-debate show addressing issues facing African-American youth, with some live music thrown in. That’s when Sistrun’s wheels started turning.

Cutting through the chaff, by 2005, she had produced seven live, call-in episodes of “We Got Issues!” for public access television using local teens. She had even put together a pre-teen version through a City summer youth program that appeared on public access. “You see teens portrayed in such a negative light,” Sistrun told a newspaper reporter at the time. “I wanted to show they have brains. I wanted to provide a forum.”

Then she got pregnant.

Now raising a two-year-old, working full time in HR for VCU Health Systems, and working on certification as an employment benefits specialist, Sistrun is back at it. This time, she bypassed borrowing production time at the local cable studio. She assembled a volunteer crew through a listing on Craig’s List. And instead of finding take-what-you-can-get talent through City youth programs, she held auditions that drew kids from as far as Manassas and Maryland. Then she prevailed upon Hyperlink Café owner David Lambert to let her young, inexperienced team shoot there for free.

Featuring five teens picked from 20 auditioners, the first installment of “We Got Issues!!” became available online earlier this month. While the cast didn’t exactly tackle their topic (“Hip-Hop Music: Creating Culture or Chaos” ), some of the opinions expressed are surprising and beg exploration.

Sistrun not only gives teens a public forum, she invites input from her cast and crew. In fact, their comments on the first show prompted a format change. “Someone in the cast emailed me and said, ‘if you want to appeal to teens, an adult sitting in front of the camera won’t do it.’” So Sistrun, 29, removed herself as the show’s moderator.

So far, Sistrun has put about $3 grand where her mouth is. “I can’t afford to be a non-profit yet,” says Sistrun. “I think you have to have about $1500. I’m going to hire a lawyer and get it right when we switch to non-profit.” For now, Sistrun’s venture is an LLC. “I had to start somewhere.”

Sistrun says she’s just begun. She aims to go global. And that will take money she doesn’t yet have. “We’re looking for sponsorship, because we want to go to the next level,” she says. “We want to be able to offer the forum to people who don’t have computers. Volunteering is great, but without sponsorship, we won’t be able to elevate.” Meanwhile, she is planning to produce a pilot to shop to networks in 2008.

The short term goal doesn’t loom quite so large. “My goal is to have all these people who volunteered and shared in the dream, I want them to be paid.”

http://www.insidewegotissues.org

Congratulations to Nyya Sistrun for the strides that she has made as a mentor, a producer, and now a mother.  Nyya is truly heaven sent by taking teen issues and putting them into the forefront to make the world aware of what is going on with the community today.  In the world that we live in, it is important to have someone who will bring forth positivity and create opportunities for teens to express what they may not be able to otherwise.  Not only what Nyya is doing therapeutic, but it relieves the tension that teens sometimes hold in. 

Nyya, you are doing a wonderful services for our youth.  We all should feel obligated to thank you because with your help, we have opened the book to a better tomorrow.  Thank you!

Shirette Hayes

I want to thank Lisa Bacon for writing this wonderful article. I also want to thank supporters of the show, without you the teens would not have a forum.

Sincerely,

Nyya Sistrun

Hi Nyya,

I think your efforts and focus is right on point.  when we look at and consider all the negative news we are exposed to today on TV, In the newspaper and on the Internet, what else can we think other then our youth is out-of-control and is headed for distruction.  Your forum allows the teens to have a voice that will give validation to the truth about how they feel and what they think about the events that are happening today, not someone else who have come to their own conclusion about what is going on with our youth.

I encourage you to stay the course and dont get discourage. Our youth needs you.

Congratulations to Ms. Nyya Sistrun who is bringing issues that teens face everyday to the forefront for public discussion.  Both urban and suburban youth are faced with issues that youth of previous decades have never faced before.  Drugs, AIDS & other STDs, homelessness, hopelessness, violence and other societal epidemics are relatively not new.  Because of the inability and/or unwillingness of families to come together around a common breakfast or dinner table to discuss these issues, a vacuum of knowledge, understanding and communications has been created.
Perhaps youth will now express their opinions and views so that a large segment of the audience (hopefully, including parents) will listen to them and respond with positive feedback.

I do hope Ms. Sistrun finds sponsors for the show - adequate to take it to the next level.

Charles H. Gray

Ms. Bacon:
Thank you for informing your readers of Nyya’s dedication to facilitating positive media exposure for young people.  As her mother, I am so proud of her, because I am acutely aware of her story.Moving from an area ripe with broadcast production opportunities, Nyya fell in love and relocated to an area with less opportunities in her field of study.  She has a beautiful relationship that produced a beautiful daughter.  She shifted her career choice to something more practical and family-friendly.
But she still remained committed to giving teens a positive outlet.

With a shoestring budget, she plunged into producing a teen talk show. “We Got Issues” , a forum to talk about solutions, showcases the frustrations, challenges, and accomplishments of the youth.

When she was a little girl, she told me she would be taking over my business one day - and that was a community newspaper with a literacy component for inner-city youth. 

And to Nyya, you have taken it one step further. You are reaching the ‘now’ generation with the ‘now’ media. You understand them.  They can talk with you and to you. You go, girl.  Love and best wishes.

Charlotte Sistrun
Mother of Nyya Sistrun, aka adadadadada