Young People!

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Today we met Barbara Mines, Cleopatra Goree, Catherine Burks-Brooks, and Roscoe Jones, all of whom were young leaders and activists during the movement. One common theme that was reiterated again and again today was the power of young people. They had less to lose, had the drive, and had the energy necessary to spark demonstrations throughout the south. Yes, the adult leaders were necessary to organize and give wisdom and guidance, but everyone who spoke to us today reminded us of how the Civil Rights Movement happened because of people our age. Before this trip, I probably wouldn’t be able to see myself participating actively in a movement or working hard to create change in the world. However, some of my peers on this trip have already proposed small steps that can be taken in order to promote equality and give attention to corruption within Baltimore. Traci brought up the idea of a Young People’s March, and I really do believe that the people in this group could make that happen. Someone also suggested having students within the public school system sit in on other public schools and seeing if it’s really possible to learn in that environment, and seeing what the consequences would be of sitting in. Today and last night I’ve been feeling very proud to be surrounded by such driven and intelligent individuals, and I’m looking forward to returning home and putting our thoughts into actions.

-Noë Wolf

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