Enlarge Two girls check out the line-up at For Teens Only expo on Oct. 3 at the Convention Center.

Posted: October 7th, 2009 Crystal Dempsey

Text and video by Tonya Jameson

Hailing from schools and communities throughout the area, more than 1,800 youth and 200 parents spent Saturday at For Teens Only, a new expo for teens and families.

Girl Talk founder Janine Davis and New Birth Charlotte hosted the symposium as a response to the growing challenges facing teens.

Davis, a Power 98 radio host, is well known for her Girl Talk Foundation, which empowers teenage girls. For Teens Only grew out of some of the issues she encountered with Girl Talk and from parents who call her at the radio station.

Davis and New Birth’s pastor Terrell Murphy wanted to find a way to bring teens and parents together for a day of discussions about Internet safety, self-esteem, dating violence and more. They plan to make this an annual event.

On Saturday, nearly three dozen speakers, including celebrities, and more than 100 vendors participated in the workshop at the Charlotte Convention Center.

After a month in which two Charlotte teens were gunned down in separate acts of violence and a Chicago teen was beaten to death, Saturday’s event was especially timely.

KD Brown, a youth activist, said he would like to see something like For Teens Only occur every quarter. “Young people don’t understand their value,” Brown said. “An event like this allows them to see their value.”

He also hoped attending the event would encourage teens to talk to each other and get outside of their circle of friends.

For Teens Only allowed youth to see the value in difference. Most teen events feature music and games, but this one offered a twist on the traditional.

Along with the typical talent show and fashion show, For Teens Only also showcased skateboarding, soccer and opera. They had video games and a Jeopardy-like trivia game.

One of the biggest surprises was a mime and Opera Carolina brought in New York-based opera singers Robert Mack and Audrey DuBois. The two performed on stage. They gave young African Americans a chance to see that their singing talent could take them to the opera house as well as BET.

For Teens Only also showcased youth diversity. Black and white teens walked around clutching skateboards. On stage, black and white breakdancers popped and locked. And the fashion show was also diverse.

Dorley Speller brought her daughter Essica to the event because she said it had informative workshops and fun activities for youth.

“It shows awareness and lot of positive things,” said Speller.

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