The Youth Are Taking the World Through Activism

“Don’t take away my right to protest,” says Martyn Lynn, a grad student at RIC studying math and computer science, and as many other activists around the country, wants others to under-stand the importance of fighting for what you believe in.

The 1960s are often thought of as the heyday of student activism in this country, thanks to groups like Students for a Democratic Society and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, who actively got involved to protest against the injustices of their time. But students are getting active in large numbers once again, both around the country and here at Rhode Island College, giving 100 percent to advocate for the rights of those who do not have a voice. The groups might be different today – Black Lives Matter (BLM), the Sunrise Movement, etc. – but many of the issues remain the same: racial justice, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ issues and environmental advocacy. 

Brooxana Pierre, a RIC student and activist for Black Lives Matter, knows how it feels to be treated differently just because of the color of her skin and her hair type. It was right after graduating from high school that she started feeling a need to advocate for her people, to bring awareness and educate them on what is just and what is not. “The purpose of my activism is to really show people that black lives do matter. We need our voices to be amplified, because our voices and our dreams matter.” She adds emphatically, “We live in a society that’s not for us, not built for us, a society that constantly says that we don’t matter.”

Lynn’s cause is the Sunrise Providence Movement, the local chapter of a national youth group dedicated to fighting climate change. He has been working towards incorporating social justice with climate issues, supporting BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) and LGBTQ+ leadership and training, and taking part in direct and long-term education about systemic racism in the United States.

Lynn has been demanding answers on climate change since he was a little boy: he grew concerned about smoke from car exhaust and after being shocked by the responses from adults in his life, he learned that it was affecting not only humans but animals, too. He was frustrated by adults who told him not to worry because somebody else was going to take care of it. That was not his style, and after getting his college degree in writing and Music at a non-traditional school, he came to realize that he couldn’t ignore the situation anymore.

“This is the greatest existential crisis that humanity has ever faced. The evidence is unequivocal that what needs to be done is not getting done. You look around and you realize that no one is doing it, so you stand up and say, ‘I have to do something about this,’” he says. This is why he joined the Sunrise Movement, which was founded in 2017. “There are a lot of people who feel the exact same way and we are standing up at the same time and finding each other to create these organizations.” 

While Lynn’s organization is fairly young, Salena Gibbs is fighting for a cause that harkens back to that ‘60s and ‘70s era of activism: the women’s rights movement. A grad student currently pursuing her master’s in justice studies, she got involved in activism in 2016. “RIC introduced me to activism,” she says. “As a freshman, I worked at the Women's Center and that is where I took off.” 

Gibbs feels that activism is important for her as a woman of color and a person with depression – which, in her case, is rooted in oppression – and that becoming an activist was the opportunity to push for change and touch the lives of others who suffer from mental health disorders. She believes it’s especially important now, during a pandemic and a period of heightened awareness of institutionalized racism. “I’ve learned that there needs to be more intersectionality and inclusion, so that we are actually creating more equity and equality at the same time,” she ex-plains.  

For Pierre, such meaningful moments are found in the power of unity within every movement. “When we fight for ourselves, we are connected to others. So we are really fighting for a group of people, for the world, for humanity,” she declares. “I feel that the definite moment of a per-son taking action can help so many people. For myself and other people who took that step, we have made an impact and encouraged people to care more about these issues.” 

That was the purpose of the Black Lives Matter march through downtown Providence to the State House that took place on June 5, which reports said may have been the largest protest in the state’s history. Pierre was there and felt that passion and sense of advocacy people have when they want to be heard. 

“There was a point in time where the police officers started facing the youth, everyone watching on a live stream, and people were really scared of what was going to happen – but then the police started marching, too,” Pierre recalls. “That was such a powerful day, even though there is still much work to be done. That was a great stamp in history to show that we are not giving up, we are not backing down,” despite a curfew and some rain, many activists stayed until late into the night. “These are our lives we have to fight for. It’s what we live to fight for and nothing is going to stop it,” she adds. 

For Gibbs, one of the most memorable moments was this year’s Juneteenth protest. Celebrated on June 19 to commemorate the day in 1865 when emancipation from enslavement was pro-claimed in Texas, Juneteenth has taken on increased significance as many have called for making it a national holiday. What Gibbs saw that day in Providence’s Kennedy Plaza was a lot of people from different backgrounds and movements coming together to make their voices heard. “Looking at the crowd, I’d never seen so many people who were so encouraged to go to a pro-test,” she says. “I think that changed my approach a lot, when it comes to activism.” 

Lynn, on the other hand, usually does not attend protests. He is more the kind of person who hangs in the background making sure that everyone else gets to the protest. But, he says, going to a protest in honor of Ruth Bader Ginsburg a couple of days after her death, was a life changing experience. “That was pretty big. People were really aligned,” he says. “There were a lot of organizations trying to stop judges, who have a history of bias, from holding positions of power in the government.” 

“The speeches were incredible,” he continues. “Before the end of the protest, both US senators from Rhode Island released a joint statement about the SCOTUS nomination, which turned into another protest a week later,” he explains. “A lot of what inspires me is not just what is said or what happens at the protest, but what comes out of it. The fact that more protests are happening and more media is covering them is a really inspiring thing for me. It means that people care and want to talk about these issues.” 

Pierre believes that being an activist and taking part in history being made right now have definitely opened her eyes to see how people feel and how it has changed her. “I feel this has made me more of a loving and assertive person,” she says. “Standing up for what’s right has really helped me utilize my voice and my passion and speak up for things that matter.” 

For Lynn, his drive towards activism comes from that intense need to do good in the face of a crisis. “When I see a crisis I jump into action,” he says. “Through doing that I’ve found such a great community of people who feel the same way, who are inspired to act the same way and are just as fearless as I am. I have a lot of more power than I think and the ability to do more things than I think, and I don’t have to be the best at something in order to make a difference. I lean into the power of community and other people in our movement who want to do the same things that I do.”

In spite of her ongoing battles with depression, Gibbs feels inspired by people who praise her activism and courage. “I hear them say that I inspire them because I am able to get out of my comfort zone and try to be a leader and create change,” she says. “They say that it is amazing because most people are too scared to do that.”  

Even though these activists are still fairly young, they already see another generation coming up under them. According to Lynn most of the activists he encounters now are very young: 16, 17 or 18. They are demonstrating a power to change the world and, perhaps no surprise, social media has become one of their most important tools. “It’s almost impossible to engage in activism without social media during COVID. But I think even outside of COVID, it’s a big thing,” he says. “Every activist knows this.” 

Social media platforms are the main tools to keep others informed, whether it is about the location of a protest, the actions to take, sharing links for petitions or to uplift partner organizations. “We’re sharing positive thoughts and keeping the hope alive in people,” Pierre says. “There is so much going on that it’s so easy to be sad and numb to everything.”

She believes it’s the role of older activists to take care of the youth. “Make sure that they know that you believe in them and you support them,” she says. Many of these young activists, who did not necessarily have any idea of leadership are nonetheless becoming the leaders, through camaraderie, community and the desire to uphold their responsibility to advocate for them-selves. Lynn agrees, adding, “People younger than me are leading this movement and I am sup-porting them in the best way that I possibly can.”