Author: Rhobie Toussaint

The Racial Revolution – Young Activists Making A Difference

By Rhobie Toussaint

Originally Published on The Harbinger

Imagine seeing someone of your demographic being murdered by a police officer: one that should have been a civil servant of the people, and ultimately, the embodiment of law and order.

Political commentaries, memes across social media, class discussions, and even revolutionary black lives matter protests unleash in unison, taking the media by storm soon after. Coming across new stories and numerous posts on social media about their deaths, among them are comments calling him a thief – an irresponsible alcoholic who merited his downfall. 

Now, imagine seeing that content almost every day for months straight. This is exactly what kids, teens, and young adults in the Black community have been facing. 

Yet again, the urgent outcries of minorities – the advancing resistance that was always present between push and turns – goes ignored under a system of ingrained racism. It is no surprise that viewing these malicious acts, from time and again, has taken a toll on the minority youth.

“Seeing these things affect my mental health drastically. I don’t want to use the word “depressed,” but it did kind of make me feel depressed, and it enraged me simultaneously,” said David Way, an MLEC alumnus.

Among these “things” is the video of a police officer who subdued a Black man, George Floyd, with a knee on his neck for eight minutes. He was motionless, without a pulse, for the last three minutes of unwarranted restraint.  

 “When I looked at the video of George Floyd, I was so sad… sad alone isn’t even the right word. I was sad and mad. I felt helpless. I wanted to honestly scream,” said Gabrielle Forbes, a rising senior at Dr. Michael Krop Senior High School.

Like many of the videos of the killing of Black People on the internet, the video of George Floyd was also something that brought a feeling of fear within a lot of Black youth. Many ponder how that could have easily been them, their father, brother or another relative. 

“Seeing the George Floyd video, my immediate emotion was fear. I don’t live a fearful life but definitely felt it while seeing that transpire and seeing how the police have that much power,” said Akil Cole, recent graduate of Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High School. 

While the viewing of these kinds of contact did take a mental toll on the youth of the Black Community, these individuals used that fear, anger, and sadness to show initiative and take a stand – like many of their counterparts. 

“After seeing that video, I felt like not being explicit about where I stand on the issue of Black Lives Matter and on the issue of police brutality was me being complicit, especially because as a Black man my voice is being called for. So I felt a responsibility to at least voice my opinion and to be active in a way that’s like dispelling misconceptions,” said Akil. 

Along with using his platforms to voice his opinions and educate others, Akil has been volunteering for the When We All Vote, My School Votes program to build student-led teams within institutions and register eligible high school students and alumni.

Like Akil, David Way has been using his social media platform to raise awareness and educate his peers. 

“And then it’s sad how even some of our black youth may not understand what is going on, why we’re protesting, and how they’re treated differently. I feel like the big elephant in the room, that is racism, needs to be addressed rather than never talked about, and I try to address it through social media,” said David. 

Amid their hurt and outrage, rising senior Gabrielle Forbes and some of her close friends decided that they would found an organization, Letters to the System, to give young people in the Black community a means of expression. 

“Personally, I don’t know of a lot of organizations that would provide me with an outlet for this kind of thing. But that’s why I made my organization because I saw the lack of support for Black youth in the community. Letters to the System is an outlet for the youth to express how they feel to their local officials so that they can make change in any way that they can,” said Gabrielle. 

Akil, David, and Gabrielle are just three of many young people in the community who did not let the discrimination and acts of violence done to others in the community deter them. Instead, they are doing everything in their power to make a difference, ensuring that they are a part of the change. 

“I for one know that I am tired of being tired. Black people are tired of being suppressed, treated differently, and killed. It’s not fair,” echoed David. 

“We need a change and we need a change now.”

This one hit home.

Even after conducting the interviews, I worked on this article for weeks, wanting nothing more than to make sure that I did right by the cause and by the people I interviewed.

I couldn’t be happier with how it came out.

If there’s anything that I learned from these past few weeks, it’s that now is not the time to remain silent. The oppression that people in the Black community faced has never went away, but instead took place in different forms. I can’t go to protests and I don’t have much money to donate, but I can write, and I have the ability to spread awareness in any way that I can.

Like Akil, Gabrielle, and David, I want to help the cause. I want to make a difference. I want to be part of the change.

It doesn’t have to be like this, and I know that it can get better.

And so, I encourage you all to spread love, educate yourself on the matter if you haven’t, and to be an ally.