Therese Kim - Staff Writer
On June 7, 2020, an episode of Elevate Maryland featured six students, including our lovely News Editor Olivia Brooks, a rising senior. In the podcast, students discussed their thoughts on current events, wanted changes, and personal experiences.
The inspiring comments of the activists began when the organizers of the recent protests in Howard County explained the motivation behind their actions and goals. The following student guests were: Christopher, a graduate of River Hill, Samantha, a rising senior at Oakland Mills, Robbie, a graduate of Glenelg Country School, Wande, a graduate of Atholton High School, Julian, a graduate of Long Reach, and Olivia. They expressed that they felt the urge to start informing communities locally and that the recent events of police brutality against African Americans were not being clearly addressed in Howard County. Students voiced their concerns for people who opposed their advocacy for the Black Lives Matter movement. They emphasized that the fight for justice for African Americans has been going on for a long time and that they decided that they were going to speak up about it without delaying its importance any further.
Despite the lengthy duration of the movement, with advanced technology, current advocates of the movement are working to implement a change differently than those in the past. Olivia said, “We have new principles that the older generations sometimes cannot understand. So I think it is important that we build those bridges and to understand that they have a reason why they are saying this. We all have to understand that this generation and later generations all have an important role to play in this and going on in the future.”
In response to those who questioned the motives of the high school student organizers and that they were only “creating hysteria,” the students stressed that while indeed every individual is important in society, the African American community has been repeatedly jeopardized because of racism so it is very essential for people to be advocating the Black Lives Matter movement right now.
Julian, who attends Susquehanna University said, “It’s a call to the now and also to the past. It’s a call that our lives have always mattered.”
Later in the podcast, the issue of African American history not being taught enough in Howard County schools was discussed. Students agreed that African American history should be added to the core curriculum because schools should be diligently teaching topics about minority groups in order for an allyship to be maintained among accurately informed students.
A topic that was brought up multiple times was the major influence of social media. By using a virtual platform, the student leaders were able to organize a protest in Columbia that drew 5,000-7,000 people. However, downsides of the media were shared as well, like how some people merely post something about Blacks Lives Matter, but their actions stop there. The students encouraged listeners to sign petitions, read about what exactly is happening, and participate in the protests if possible.
As the episode wrapped up, the hosts asked the highlighted question, “What do we all need to do to elevate Maryland?” The students expressed the importance of conversing with our families, communities, and strangers in order for assumptions to be broken down and for hate to decline.
Olivia said, “[We should be] looking at videos, etc. that challenge you, that make you uncomfortable, that make you concerned...social media really influences and blocks out everyone else who has a different opinion. The only way to challenge those biases is by talking to people...by understanding what you carry and how you can empower other people.”
The powerful closing statement made by Robbie, who will be attending Dartmouth, was “Don’t hate. Don’t hate anyone...If you can understand someone who disagrees with you, then maybe they can understand you...”
Check out Episode 109 of Elevate Maryland! (Linked in our media page)