Alex Epstein is a college student who, during high school, was compelled to help rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Using the tool of VOLUNTEER, Alex made multiple trips and engaged with the local community.
Alex took initiative and helped found NY2NO, or New York to New Orleans, to involve other young people in the revitalization of the New Orleans landscape.This video is part of a series produced by Not In Our School's parent company, The Working Group, for the Institute for Advancing Unity. This series focus on extraordinary people whose personal choices have inspired others to join in tremendous collective achievements.
Extraordinary People (Series)
Vajra Watson founded SAYS: Sacramento Area Youth Speaks to give young people a voice through hip hop and spoken word. "We underestimate young people," Vajra says. "They're ready to grab the mic. Are we ready to listen?"
Thao, executive director of National Hmong American Farmers, immigrated to Fresno, CA with his family at age 8, after Laotian citizens were granted asylum in the US after the Vietnam war. Many of the first Hmong farmers suffered from discrimination, so Thao left his "cushy" job at the city of Fresno to ORGANIZE his community in a fight against injustice.
Using the experiences of community members, Thao has grown NHAF to promote economic development, training and assistance to create positive social change in his community.
This video is part of a series produced by Not In Our School's parent company, The Working Group, for the Institute for Advancing Unity. This series focus on extraordinary people whose personal choices have inspired others to join in tremendous collective achievements.
Get the Quick Start Guide to start a Not In Our School Campaign in your school
Series Executive Producer: Edith Crawford
Concept Designer: Stephanie Francis
CEO, Institute for Advancing Unity: Dr. Robert M. Harris, Ph.D.
"Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot uneducate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. And you cannot oppress a people who are not afraid anymore. We are the future, and the future is ours."
Erica Fernandez has memorized these words, originally spoken by Cesar Chavez, and put them into action. Beginning in Oxnard, CA, Erica used the power of PROTEST to rally against a large energy corporation that planned to erect a liquefied natural gas (LNG) pipeline around affluent California coastal communities and through Oxnard, primarily occupied by monolingual Spanish-speaking immigrants.
Not only would the LNG pipeline cut through the agricultural land vital to the economy of Oxnard, it would bring millions of tons of pollutants to one of the most beautiful areas in California.
This video is part of a series produced by Not In Our School's parent company, The Working Group, for the Institute for Advancing Unity. This series focus on extraordinary people whose personal choices have inspired others to join in tremendous collective achievements.
Get the Quick Start Guide to start a Not In Our School Campaign in your school
Series Executive Producer: Edith Crawford
Concept Designer: Stephanie Francis
CEO, Institute for Advancing Unity: Dr. Robert M. Harris, Ph.D.
During a dance performance on stage, Jackie Rotman's music suddenly stopped. In response, members of the audience joined Jackie on stage and began dancing to show their support. Expanding on the idea that dance can help foster a positive atmosphere, Jackie began providing hip-hop classes free of charge to youth that would not otherwise be able to afford them.
Now with 10 chapters across the country, Everybody Dance Now! is a nonprofit organization that aims to transform the lives of youth through dance, leadership, and community.
In 1995, Azim Khamisa's 20-year-old son, Tariq, was delivering a pizza when he was shot to death by a 14-year-old gang member. Experiencing the pain, grief, frustration, and anger that a parent would, Azim decided that the only way he could better the situation was to use the tool of FORGIVE to ensure that this type of tragedy happens less frequently in the future. After meeting with the father of the boy who shot Tariq, Azim decided that he would bring his message of forgiveness and mutual respect to groups of young people all over the country. The foundation in his son's memory, the Tariq Khamisa Foundation, raises awareness and engages youth to resist a culture of violence and learn to live in harmony with one another.
Janet Miller, a teacher at Hoover Middle School, was blown away by district-wide statistics that revealed the risk of violence that transgendered youth experience. Moved by the statistics, Miller stated to her colleagues that it was their responsibility to create a safe learning environment for ALL students and that any type of discrimination should not be tolerated.
This video is part of a series produced by Not In Our School's parent company, The Working Group, for the Institute for Advancing Unity. This series focus on extraordinary people whose personal choices have inspired others to join in tremendous collective achievements.
Get the Quick Start Guide to start a Not In Our School Campaign in your school
Series Executive Producer: Edith Crawford
Concept Designer: Stephanie Francis
CEO, Institute for Advancing Unity: Dr. Robert M. Harris, Ph.D.
Palo Alto High School student Kevin Ward challenges the stereotype of African Americans as "gangsters," and says "smart is the new gangster." The 16-year-old is working to bridge the achievement gap for students of color, through the school's Unity club and a program called Bridge, connecting students from affluent Palo Alto and East Palo Alto, a neighboring low-income community. (6:21)
To turn on closed captioning for this film, click play, then click the Subtitles/CC button on the bottom of the video player.
Learn how to start a NIOS campaign at your school with our free Not In Our School Quick Start Guide.
This video is part of the Not In Our School Video Action Kit, a comprehensive toolkit featuring films, lessons, and resources designed to motivate students to speak out against bullying, and create new ways to make their schools safe for everyone. Learn more about the Video Action Kit.
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