SPARTANS UNITE AGAINST INEQUALITY

SPARTANS UNITE AGAINST INEQUALITY

Written in collaboration by the ORACLE STAFF

For those who are feeling lost during these times, It’s okay to not fully understand. You may not know how others are feeling or how they’ve been treated/perceived, and you shouldn’t feel guilty for not having that perspective. However, what we all must do is educate ourselves on the history, on the movement, and what we can do to help support equality for all people. There are many ways to be an agent of change– and that all starts with education. You can donate if possible, sign petitions, attend peaceful demonstrations (after talking to your parents and guardians), vote (if you’re 18 or above), and then, share your information with others. 

Sparta is a beautiful place. Sparta High School offers a competitive course load and myriad co-curricular activities that prepare its students for the future. We, as students, are the future. It is our duty to acknowledge that there is a lack of diversity in our town and in our school. With that in mind, it is also our duty to acknowledge that under-represented people need a voice. We must not be colorblind, but rather we must do more to embrace the differences among us and learn together. 

This is the time to make our voices heard, and this is the chance for us to unite and to set the bar high. We stand for equality. As human beings, it is our job to spread love, kindness, and awareness.  Many may feel that civil unrest does not apply to them; however as we gain more exposure to the world around us, and learn the hardships of others, it is no longer a distant situation, but a serious issue that from which many of us have been shielded.  We have much hope for better days ahead, where equality will be achieved, one day.  But first we all must continue to work together and learn. 

There are a variety of resources readily available to start learning. 

Books: 

1. Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde 

2. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou 

3. So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo 

4. How to Be an Antiracist by Ibrham X. Kendi 

5. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison 

6. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston 

7. The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin 

8. Redefining Realness by Janet Mock 

9. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander 

10. If They Come in the Morning: Voices of Resistance by Angela Davis 

Film/TV: 

1. 13th (Available on Netflix)

2. American Son (Available on Netflix) 

3. When They See Us (Available on Netflix) 

4. The Hate U Give (Available on YouTube, Google Play, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu)

5. Selma (Available on YouTube, Google Play, Amazon Prime Video) 

Links:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/131D1luhxfT6W7ZCYc-MJlT4hLxncc6jdNhSzsRfGOmM/edit

https://sites.google.com/sparta.org/shslibrarymrc/equity-equality?authuser=0

http://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/TT%20Difficult%20Conversations%20web.pdf

https://www.tolerance.org/

http://www.ascd.org/publications/newsletters/education-update/oct19/vol61/num10/How-to-Be-an-Antiracist-Educator.aspx

Don't Say Nothing

Let’s take this opportunity to foster relationships, educate each other, and affect change. 

Now is the time to band together and focus on creating a better tomorrow. As teenagers, following the herd feels safe for many of us, but now is the time to speak up. We must become our own leaders. Step out of your comfort zone and have an uncomfortable conversation with a friend or family member. There is no debate, equality is a human right. Knowledge is key to the success of the Black Lives Matter movement and to giving agency to all underrepresented people. Learn about it, teach about it, speak about it, sing about it, draw about it, paint about it. Spread the word any way you can.