"Children already have side hustles," executive director Maya Wheeler says."All we're doing is helping them put it in a formal, legal process."The nonprofit focused on supporting BIPOC women and youth is hosting an Empowering Youth Through Entrepreneurship program this summer.."When people don't have money, sometimes they make bad decisions. Youth violence, a lot of times, is around theft. Kids are stealing cars or stealing from a store, and it escalates.
Last year, 75 percent of the girls enrolled in the program left with their own registered LLC or nonprofit, Wheeler says, including a jewelry and candle business, a baked goods shop and a nonprofit to create a school robotics club.