TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Juvenile rehabilitation is a long, demanding, and sometimes fruitless process, but one Taiwanese organization believes every young outcast has a story to tell and deserves a second chance beyond the justice system.
Established in 1992, the Bornanew Youth Caring Association (BYCA) supports youth from disadvantaged backgrounds who feel society has no place for them. Dream Café was founded to create a difference — to be a place where young people can learn skills, interact with others, and gain confidence that schools fail to give them.
"Many young Taiwanese cannot get a sense of accomplishment in the current educational system. When educators only care about performance in major subjects and students with athletic or artistic talent miss their chance to shine," said Chen Yen-chun (陳彥君), director of the BYCA. "Many young adults then choose to drop out and use extreme, often illegal, means to find their worth."
Having been a social worker for more than a decade, Chen pointed out that changing social values and technologies have drastically shaped juvenile crime. In 2011, most delinquents were involved in theft (32.58 percent) or violence (15.07 percent), but in 2019, higher percentages of youth were being taken into custody for fraud (22.23 percent) and drug-related crime (13.55 percent).
Surprisingly, schools are some of the easiest places for adolescents to buy and sell drugs.
Dream Café gives young adults a chance to learn as a waiter, cook, or barista. Here, there are no labels or stigmatization; everyone is encouraged to equip themselves with real-world skills and even earn vocational certification. As young offenders in Taiwan usually face a second rejection from the educational system after leaving reform schools, the coffee shop gives them an option other than relapse.
Meals from Dream café (Taiwan News photo)
One Dream Café employee, Zoe, suffered sexual abuse and substance abuse as a teen before entering a reform school for more than two years. With Chen's help, she was brought into the coffee house and kept herself away from drugs before turning 18. Now a chef and team leader, she is mentoring youth who, like herself, have felt lost while looking for the right path.
"Every kid faces a choice after they leave custody — either return to the environment they are familiar with but which will draw them back into a vicious circle, or choose a new direction that seems uncertain but promises a better future. If each of them has an adult, like us, to accompany them, to give them resources, the result will be very different," Chen said.
Dream Café: No.22, Ln. 362, Songjiang Rd., Zhongshan Dist., Taipei City
(Taiwan News photos)