This Black Futures Month, we’re introducing a new series to highlight the organizers who make up the Alliance Network.
Happy Black Futures Month!
As the first Black Executive Director of the Alliance, I’m so proud to see a new generation of Black leaders in our network rise to make a change in their communities. As we celebrate Black history by honoring the triumphs of Black Americans who led movements before us, we must also recognize the Black young people who are making history today by paving the way for a better, brighter future.
To highlight Black youth organizers of the Alliance this month, we’re launching a new digital media series - Youth Organizer Spotlights. This storytelling project will focus on the individual narratives of youth organizers who drive the collective local organizing power in the Alliance Network. This Black Futures Month, learn how Black youth organizers are honoring their ancestors and creating thriving communities for future generations.
Youth Organizer Spotlights: Black Futures Month Edition
We sat down with three Black youth organizers in our network to hear how their work drives a thriving Black future, the elders in their communities who inspire them, and what they want young people of the future to know about their work today.
Kiah Sandler - Chicago Votes
Development Associate
she/her/hers
“I want to empower young people to always understand that living in their truth and existing in happiness is creating Black History. Anything that perpetuates Black Joy is a testament to our resiliency as a people.”
Jessica Saint-Fleur - Engage Miami
Lead Organizer and Member Engagement Manager
she/her/they
“I think for young Black people like myself, [organizing] is really empowering to see how much power we do actually hold, and how much power we can take back…The more organizing and advocacy power that we have, the more knowledge we hold.”
"...to know that [my community Black elder] is still alive and well, and still pushing and fighting for what he believes in gave me the courage to say ‘hey, who am I to let a little fear stop being what he is to me to someone else in the future?’ And hopefully with that encounter and that protest I was able to inspire one mind to stand up for what they believe in and not only stand up for themselves, but stand up for their community."
Jasmine Baker - Leaders Igniting Transformation
Northwestern Campus Organizer
she/her/hers
"I just hope the future generation knows that a lot of the work you’re doing at first may not seem like there’s anything really happening but every day as the world keeps turning things are happening. Every word you say, every conference room you step in, every meeting you’re having, every rally you’re planning means something."
Abbott Elementary- From the mind of internet sensation, Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary follows a group of dedicated and passionate teachers defying odds to help their students at a Philadelphia elementary school succeed.
Sojournieson YouTube - Sojourner White, international social worker and travel blogger.
Tracy Joseph on TikTok - Black creator, and the source of some of your favorite viral TikTok dances
Inspiration Station
“Every day, we write the future / Together, we sign it / Together, we declare it / We share it / For this truth marches on / Inside each of us.”-Amanda Gorman, “Believer’s Hymn for the Republic”
"We may not have chosen the time, but the time has chosen us." - Congressman John Lewis
Join us in celebrating Black Futures Month by checking out our full-length Youth Organizer Spotlights inour latest blog post, and uplift their stories on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
