7 Young Anti-Racism Educators to Inspire You
These past few months have been both devastating and empowering, the pandemic has cast off a veil for many of us and we've have been witness to how unjust society can be. But also there have been truly beautiful moments of community and intersectionality. As these movements grow many of us that were initially apathetic start to find our voice and realise positive change can be made.
Here are 7 youth anti-racism educators to grow your inspiration further.
1.Nupol Kiazolu
Nupol Plans to be president in 2036 and hopes to to reframe how the US thinks about racism. As a young activist and organizer in the Black Lives Matter movement and a member of DoSomething (a youth led movement for good that tackles many different campaigns) She's already on her way to making great positive changes in the world. We support her every step of the way. ✊🏿
2. Winona and Priya
In 2014, Winona and Priya realised their community didn’t know how to talk about race, even in their own classrooms. They founded the non-profit CHOOSE and created a platform for minorities to share their stories. This created an opportunity to start talking about race within their school and local community. The website eventually turned into a book called The Classroom Textbook, a racial literacy toolkit and textbook for bringing racial literacy into the classroom, which can be freely downloaded from their website for all educators. 🤝🏾🤝🏼
3. Ziad Ahmed Ziad
Ziad was wrongfully placed on the TSA no-fly list as a child because of his name. He was often disappointed in the hostility aimed at the Muslim community and became inspired to combat racial prejudice online and offline. He created redefy an active community that embraces acceptance and tolerance ran by and for teens. He has had dinner with President Obama, and is even on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list!
4. Peyton Klein
Peyton had a realisation in class, she knew the name of every student except for “the girl wearing a hijab.” Peyton considered herself an inclusive person and it surprised her. She made an effort to befriend the classmate and learned of her many struggles as a refugee in the United States. The stories of cultural intolerance inspired Peyton to make positive change. She knew that more had to be done to create intercultural friendships like theirs and founded the Global Minds Initiative. A student-led organisation that combats discrimination and promotes inclusion in schools around the world.
5. Thandiwe Abdullah
A 15 year old organiser with Black Lives Matter and Co-Founder of the Black Lives Matter Youth group. She has already made a huge impact through activism, is a rising voice for younger generations, and is part of a national coalition of colored youth organisers called Out of POCket. Thandiwe has been active with March for Our Lives, emphasizing what gun control must look like for Black youth. She was named one of TIME’s most influential teens of 2018.
6. Edna Chavez
Edna was affected by immigration after having her father taken away in 2016, she now advocates for justice in marginalised communities and encourages young people to speak out. She lost her brother to gun violence and gave an impassioned and emotional speech about how it impacts families at March For Our Lives in 2018 and is now one of the leading voices in the gun control movement.
7. Mei-Ling Ho-Shing
On February 14, 2018. Mei-Ling hid behind a desk in her Algebra class holding the hand of a foreign-exchange student as a gunman opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle. The devastating school shooting was a life changing moment for Mei-Ling, she was already an activist with Black Lives Matter, but after surviving the traumatic ordeal she became more vocal than ever. Calling out the March for Our Lives movement for not being inclusive of her black peers, and commenting on the lack of intersectionality within the youth gun violence prevention movement. “Gun violence is capable of affecting everyone, the movement needs to look like everyone.”
No matter what your age it's never too late to start taking action, when you're part of a movement the energy and community is a beautiful experience. Don't be afraid, even the smallest step makes you stronger. 💪🏾💪