By Nataliya Braginsky

I write this on the eve of my seniors’ graduation, filled with reverence for my students and a sense of possibility for the world they are creating. Today at graduation rehearsal, I looked at those about to walk across the stage, and I thought about what they’ve experienced throughout high school. In their faces I saw so much more than the dominant narrative about our schools and young people. This is not to say that schools aren’t in crisis or that students aren’t struggling, but rather, that this telling is incomplete. 

We are accustomed to deficit-based accounts of our public schools and also to ways of teaching history that center atrocities and leave out fights for freedom that occurred every step of the way. Because of this, we must seek out, create, and teach the counter narratives. In the face of “learning loss,” “chronic absenteeism,” and “upticks in violence,” we must speak of young people organizing, building community, and fighting for the world they deserve. 

I’ve been re-watching this Youth Rising Panel, co-hosted by the Anti-Racist Teaching and Learning Collective and the Zinn Education Project, since it took place on May 18, 2022. The panel—which I was honored to co-host with my student, Jayleen Nieves, who will graduate tomorrow—brought together 12 student organizers from across the country to discuss how they are responding to current crises and using their schools as staging grounds for resistance. The panel reminds me viscerally of how powerful and brilliant young people are; each viewing reveals new sources of inspiration that help me know that another world is not only possible, it is already here.

I recommend watching the entire panel, but in the meantime here are a few highlights that speak to the vision and power of youth, as well as the role that educators can — and must — play in solidarity with students.

Hafiza Khalique of Detroit Area Youth Uniting Michigan brought down the house early in the conversation when she told us:

“We have power. We may be 16, 15, 14, 13, but we definitely have the power. We don’t need to wait for adults. We can do this ourselves. We are larger by numbers. We might not have the control or the place, but we definitely have the power. And there is big power in numbers, and our stories, and just the way that we can advocate for ourselves.”

The panel’s co-host Jayleen Nieves, a member of New Haven’s Students for Educational Justice, chimed in with this insight: “We are the power! Most of the time when you see lots of administration or lots of corrupt leaders fighting back and being like: ‘oh no, we won’t let this happen’ — it’s because they’re afraid, because we have the strength. Most of the time they say, ‘oh yeah, you can’t do that,’ because they know we can do that.”

Anyone who has ever worked with young people knows their strength. In my nine years in New Haven, and especially this year, I have been awestruck by students at Metropolitan high school and in New Haven’s Citywide Youth Coalition. Witnessing them organizing protests for trans justice and racial justice, for removing cops from schools and replacing them with networks of care — their vision and commitment to justice has kept me going. It has also returned me to the ever-pressing question: what is our role as educators? While young people are powerful all on their own, they deserve the solidarity and support of their teachers. What’s more, our movements for just schools and cities are far stronger when youth and educators fight alongside one another.

Ana Villavasso, one of the panelists from Georgia, spoke about the crucial role one of their teachers played in sparking the Hands Off Georgia protest, which Ana planned with fellow panelist, Vinessa Taylor, and their peers. As Ana put it: “Teachers — if they would allow themselves to be — they can be the mobilizing force for students.” If we would allow ourselves to be! Indeed, the only thing standing in our way of being in solidarity with our students is ourselves.

The 12 youth panelists had many insights to share about how educators can do this work alongside our students, and this part of the panel (starting at 57:30) warrants an especially close listen by teachers. Catlyn Savado, a Chicago Public Schools student, broke down the role of teachers with a decisive clarity. She said: “Teachers are either abolitionists or they’re police.”

I have been thinking about this quote every day since the panel. In this moment, when elected officials across the country are calling for arming teachers, Catlyn’s words have felt even more pressing. But even when we are not in the aftermath of yet another school shooting, Catlyn’s words are instructive, inspiring, and imperative. They call on us to learn more about what it means to be an abolitionist educator—this Haymarket panel, this article about Ruth Wilson Gilmore, and these books by Bettina Love and Mariame Kaba are great places to begin—and to commit to the lifelong process of becoming (a better) one.

Below you can read a short bio for each pair of student panelists and a description of work they are doing.

In Chicago, young people have advocated for the implementation of COVID safety measures in their public schools. They have also spearheaded conversations that reimagine what learning looks like, what community looks like, and how we build sustainable and nourishing school communities. Catelyn Savado and Reyna Lopez-Alcanter are two Chicago Public Schools students who have been a part of this youth movement. In January of 2022 they led a district-wide walkout calling for safe schools during a pandemic at its peak. They are also mobilizing their peers to fight for free transportation, more school support staff, and schools that treat students’ broader communities as an integral part of their school communities.

After a youth summit on guns and violence, Detroit Area Youth Uniting Michigan or DAYUM was formed to center Black youths' critiques of systemic violence, which was missing in the gun violence conversation. DAYUM works on a variety of other social and political issues, and Hafiza Khalique and Brittyn Benjamin-Kelley are two of the organization’s youth leaders. Early in the pandemic they created an Online Learning Bill of Rights which included fighting for anti-racist education and mental health relief. Currently, DAYUM has been leading a campaign to end the uniform and dress code policy within their district — and the ableism, sexism, and racism embedded within the policy.

Jae Bethea is a member of Citywide Youth Coalition and the President of her school’s Black Student Union and GSA, and Amya Smith is the President of the school’s Social Justice Club. Together Jae and Amya have fought for change around their New Haven high school’s policies related to sexual violence, which culminated in a walkout on campus that shone a light on rape culture and amplified the voices of survivors. They have also pushed to improve the sexual health education curriculum for their school. In addition to this work, Jae and Amya have also been fighting for anti-racism training for the mostly white teaching staff at their school.

Edha Gupta and Christina Ellis are the President and Vice-President of their high school’s Panther Anti-Racist Union. Last year their school district in York, Pennsylvania imposed a ban on a long list of books by authors of color and other anti-racist educational resources. Together, Edha, Christina, and their peers fought this districtwide book ban, organizing a series of protests. Their campaign was successful — in September 2021, their district’s board of education lifted the ban on these books.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Ana Villavasso and Vinessa Taylor organized with their peers across Georgia in opposition to a “divisive concepts” bill. Now signed into law, this legislation restricts discussions about race and limits educators’ ability to teach the true history of the United States. Along with other students, in February of 2022, Ana and Vinessa helped organize the “Hands Off Georgia” protest, marching on the State Capitol and speaking out about the harms of this legislation.

Will Larkins is the co-founder of their school’s Queer Student Union and Maddi Zornek is the co-founder of their school’s National Organization for Women chapter. Together, Will and Maddi organized a walkout at their high school in Florida in opposition to the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, now signed into law. Maddi and Will are also organizing to challenge lawakers who supported this bill at the ballot box. Through recent vote registration drives at their school they have already registered 200 new voters.