Welcome to the second edition of No Hurt, an electronic magazine published by Young People's Press. While the first issue of No Hurt focused on domestic violence, particularly against women, the purpose of this edition is to provide a forum for young people to talk about the sometimes sensitive and painful issues relating to abuse, violence and alienation.

These are stories with an edge. They speak to some of the difficult experiences faced by young people today. One needs only to open the newspaper or turn on the television to appreciate that we live in a flawed world. And perhaps those who know this best are young people, for they are all too often at the receiving end of much of the violence and abuse in our society. They know first-hand that life can be a school of hard knocks.

But if the lessons of life are often unnecessarily harsh, many young people have learned that by speaking out they can begin to overcome injustice and take control of their lives.

In this edition of , young writers address a range of issues: sexual, physical and emotional abuse; violence; the experience of becoming a ward of the Children's Aid Society; self-injurious behaviour; the homophobia that gay and lesbian teens face daily; drug use; and the realities of life for street youth.

These stories do not necessarily have fairy tale endings. But then, there is no standard narrative for the passage from childhood and adolescence to adulthood. The idealized notion of childhood as a time only of sunshine and carefree play has always been something of a myth. And while in the past, our society may have been able to mouth the rhetoric of childhood as fairy tale, we can no longer do so today.

While some of these stories are disturbing, there is a common thread that runs through them -- the courage inherent in each of the voices. In a society that seldom values or validates the ideas of its young people, it takes courage to come forward and speak out. By doing so, the young writers not only empower themselves, they also send a message to other youth that the problems they face are shared.

Finally, they give the broader public some much-needed insight into the on-the-ground realities of life for youth today. If we as a society are to properly address the headline-grabbing problems faced by youth, the voices of these young people will need to be heard.

Young People's Press (YPP) is a national news service for youth, 14-24. More than two hundred and twenty daily and weekly newspapers have printed YPP stories and some publish them on a regular basis. For example, The Toronto Star publishes young street every Tuesday, and YPP provides much of the content (2-3 pages) for the section. In addition, YPP publishes weekly sections or columns in The Halifax Chronicle-Herald, The Kitchener-Waterloo Record and The Prince Albert Daily Herald. YPP also publishes several electronic magazines on the Internet (See "Other YPP E-zines" link).

To get involved with Young People's Press, check out the "Write 4 Us" section of our web site, www.ypp.net. To submit an article for possible inclusion in a future edition of No Hurt, please send it directly to us: yppto@planeteer.com.