Oops! Our bad!

A previous version of this email misspelled Amanda Gorman's name. It has been corrected below.

Team, from boycotting buses to demanding clean water in Michigan, Black history has always been pushed forward by the youth.

This month, we’re doing more than saying empty words about how grateful we are for the history-makers who came before us. We’re amplifying the history that young Black Americans are making right now. 

Here’s our list of Black history-makers making waves in the present day. Think we missed anyone? Let us know about Black activists making history where you are.

Best known to the world as Little Miss Flint, Mari Copeny has spent her formative years fighting to bring awareness to the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. Mari’s used her platform to bring politicians on board to solve problems that have cost people their lives.

Justin Pearson represents Tennessee’s 86th district in the Tennessee House of Representatives. He and his colleague Justin Jones were unjustly expelled from the Tennessee House just last year for participating in a protest for gun control on the House floor. Since being reinstated to the Tennessee House, Rep. Pearson has continued to fight for common sense gun control laws in Tennessee, as well as advocate for other issues like affordable housing and voting rights.

Amanda Gorman is the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history. Her poem The Hill We Climb, which she recited at President Biden’s inauguration, calls for unity and togetherness while also celebrating her heritage as a Black woman in America.

Want to highlight a Black activist in your area? Let us know about someone doing great work in your area today.

Together, 

NextGen America