- 2 days ago
ESSENCE GU Summit, Presented by CBS "The Equalizer." Young activists and organizers join us to share how they are leveraging their social footprint to continue the work towards a better reality for Black and Brown communities worldwide.
Panelists: Entrepreneur & Activist Chelsea Miller, Civil Rights & Political Activist Mary-Pat Hector and Student Activist & Community Organizer Zyahna Bryant
Panelists: Entrepreneur & Activist Chelsea Miller, Civil Rights & Political Activist Mary-Pat Hector and Student Activist & Community Organizer Zyahna Bryant
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Hello, GU community. I'm Sophia Dennis, the co-founder of Essence Girls United and the
00:11founder of Facing Youth. I am so excited for this panel discussion that we've put together for you
00:16guys. We get the opportunity to sit down with some of the most amazing change makers in our
00:22generation. These young Black women have done so much for our communities and are going to tell us
00:28a little bit about what they do and how we can also use social media as a way to promote activism
00:34and the things that we care about. We've seen them change the world one step at a time and they're
00:40going to show us a little bit, they're going to tell us a little bit about how we can do the same
00:44and how we can follow along and understand the best ways to conduct ourselves on social media
00:49when having social conversations, when interacting with activists, you know, when becoming change
00:55makers. So we get to talk to the wonderful entrepreneur and activist Chelsea Miller.
01:06Hi everyone. Good morning.
01:12It's so nice to have you. Thank you so much for joining us.
01:14Uh, we are also welcomed by political activist and civil rights activist, Mary Pat Hector.
01:23Good morning.
01:23Good morning. It's so amazing to talk to you and to see you.
01:28Um, we're super excited for this conversation.
01:31And lastly, but certainly not least, we are joined by student activist and community organizer,
01:38Zianna Bryant.
01:40Good morning.
01:42And so I'm really excited to talk to you guys today about how we can use social media
01:47to make activism and movements and messages more accessible to people who want to be involved or
01:53for people who even want to step into the world of activism themselves and become advocates for
01:58the things that they want to change in their communities.
02:00So with that being said, what are some of the things that you guys are advocating for
02:04at this moment? Like, what are you fighting for at this moment?
02:08For a lot of us, especially the new wave of activists and new generation of activists coming
02:13in, we don't necessarily see things in silos, right? We see things as intersectional. We see things as
02:19connected. And so right now, a lot of the conversations that we're having in the organizer space,
02:24specifically with Freedom March NYC, is cops out of classrooms. What does that look like?
02:29As we talk about racial justice and the work that needs to be done, especially for Black youth
02:34future because that's the center of what we fight for. We also know that we can't talk about Black
02:38youth future without talking about environmental racism and climate change and how that's also
02:43going to impact young folks. And so I would say it's a combination of things. It's what's
02:48happening in our communities, but also what is going on on a global scale and how do we make sure
02:53that we are supporting other local organizers, amplifying the voices of families within the movement.
02:58How are we standing for them? We have an unveiling in New York City tomorrow with Terrence Floyd,
03:04George Floyd's brother, that's going to be a signaling of what's next for the movement. We
03:09have so many different organizers that are coming out for that. And so the work never ends. I always
03:14say it just takes on different forms. And we've been seeing that a lot lately.
03:19Mary.
03:20Yeah. So Chelsea mentioned racial justice. And when I think about racial justice, I think about equity.
03:27And I think about the fact that, you know, the average Black student leaves college with $52,000
03:34in student loan debt. And I think about how can we talk about equity when we literally leave college
03:42with debt holding us down. And, you know, right now a lot of people don't know that Congress is on the
03:49cusp of passing a free and affordable college. When you think about the fact that if they continue
03:56to push this reconciliation bill, and if it passes, that minority-serving institutions,
04:01that's tribal colleges and historically Black colleges and universities, will actually have free
04:07tuition. And that's free tuition for public HBCUs, but for private historically Black colleges,
04:15universities and tribal colleges, that's two years free college. When I think about that,
04:20that gets me excited. Because when I graduated from Spelman, I left with $50,000 in student loan debt.
04:26And hopefully my daughter does not have to do that. Because we might have to think about other
04:32options, right? But, you know, when I think about racial justice, I think about equity. I think about
04:37what that can mean for our communities. And other things beyond free college that we're fighting for,
04:42is just our basic right to continue to vote. And, you know, those are two things that are
04:48super important to me and that we're fighting for at RISE and Black Youth Vote.
04:54Thank you so much for your work. Zayana?
04:57Yeah, so I think much like Mary Pat, I love the lens of equity as a way of coming to the work and
05:05approaching everything. And so I think when we talk about racial justice work, we are talking about class
05:10and gender as well, and all of those performances. And so when we're thinking about our voting rights
05:16being under attack, I think that I look at it through the lens of progress not being linear.
05:21And so we have to continue to be aware of the different ways that white supremacy and racism
05:27reinvents itself in order to be present for the current moment. And so I think, you know, we're telling
05:33people to come out into the streets in 2020, like we're telling people, okay, let's march,
05:38let's come up with our agenda on the ground. But how do we push those agendas if we're not putting
05:43people into place to write the policies and to bring the things into laws? So I think that that's
05:50important, voting rights, of course. And then also educational equity. We know that Black girls are
05:55disproportionately more likely to be suspended or expelled from school. And so what are the consequences of
06:01that down the line? We see the inequities in higher education. And so I think for me, as a current
06:07college student who's still trying to find my way through this whole idea of academia as a first-gen
06:13student, I'm really invested in making sure that Black students have all the access to all the
06:18opportunities to socially move up and to have access to a better life.
06:24I think that kind of older way of thinking is something that Gen Z has done a great job of
06:30unfolding and unpacking so that we can understand how we can stand up for not only our communities,
06:36but all the spaces in which we see injustices and understand that an injustice in one specific
06:41community may be fueled or may be connected to an injustice in your community.
06:45And then I'll just quickly add to that that I think that both myself, Mary, Pat, and Zai come from a
06:53framework of understanding the civil rights movement of the past and how it connects to
06:59now. But I also want to exhume the narratives of a lot of Gen Z who actually have reached a point
07:05where they don't even want to engage in our political system, right? And so I think that
07:09that's telling of where we are, where a lot of times we politicize these issues, when in reality,
07:14when we're talking about Black lives, when we're talking about fighting for Black in the future,
07:18there is no party that's ultimately going to lead us to freedom and equity and all of these things
07:23that we're talking about. And so to Zai's point, that's why it's not linear, because it doesn't
07:27matter who's in office, we have to continue to show up and do the work.
07:30And I think we live in a time where social media activism being tied with like the idea of social
07:38media influencers can get faded in certain people's minds, specifically when they're not
07:44actually engaging on the platforms or engaging with the activists.
07:47So for young people who are on social media, who are trying to spread a message or start a movement,
07:52what would be some of the ways that you guys think we can ensure that we're not being taken
07:56advantage of for somebody's little woke moment on social media?
08:02That's a nice way of putting it, little woke moment. To me, I feel like I spent a lot of time
08:09just because of the nature of my work, like eating liberals for breakfast. I actually told someone
08:13that on a call yesterday. And I think what it really comes down to is that a lot of times we're
08:18speaking in echo chambers and it's kind of becomes like a woke Olympics, right? Like who can get
08:26something to be the most viral, who can come up with something that's really catchy and like can take off
08:31on Twitter. And to me, when you think about activism at the root of it, it is supposed to
08:37be inherently revolutionary. It is supposed to be something that pushes against the status quo in
08:44such a way that we are completely reimagining our society as it stands. And so for me as an activist,
08:50and really an organizer, because there's so many different forms of activism, I spend a lot of time
08:55thinking about how do we get outside of social media. I always say that social media is a construct
09:00that is designed and was designed and continues to be updated the algorithm by white men who have
09:06in their minds what it looks like to socialize in the digital age. But we have to keep in mind that
09:10these platforms were not invented with our liberation, without social justice, all these things in mind.
09:16And so how do we challenge even social media and the algorithms and the ways in which we have been
09:21conditioned to believe what community looks like to now take that to the streets and now take that
09:26in real life to Mary Pat's point? How do we make sure that we're passing legislation? Because guess
09:31what? A petition could have 2 million followers, it could die in Congress. And so that's really important
09:37to the discussion as well, because we've seen it happen all the time. The Justice and Policing Act,
09:42prime example. Yeah, I think Black Square Tuesday really showed us how that works, right? I think
09:49everyone was excited to post their Black Square, some people still have them surprisingly. And, you know,
09:56we also saw that those same people when it was time to put out calls for mutual aid for Black trans
10:01women, they were silent. Or when it was time to talk about how Black women are just largely not
10:07supported, they were silent. And when it was time to talk about how people use Black scents
10:13for comedic relief, they were also silent. I think I have to remind myself that when we create our own
10:19platforms, we have control of them. When we tell our own stories and we lead those efforts, we have
10:23control of them. But when we're looking for outside validation from systems that have never really been
10:29designed for us, we start to see really slimy and shisey things starting to happen.
10:36Yeah, that's that's I would also say, I would also just quickly add that there are a lot of white
10:41influencers who use social justice issues and call themselves an activist just as a way to gain
10:48attention, platforms, also garner money, right, and funding and sponsorships off the basis of social
10:54impact. And so be very aware when you are seeing these things. If someone has never organized
11:00something in their lives, if all they do is just create content that is oftentimes is very click
11:05baity, right, they wait until it's an issue that is really important, and then they bandwagon on it,
11:11that's an indicator, right, really on kind of the voices and what we should be looking at as far as
11:17content and who's actually doing the work and who isn't. A lot of the organizers that I know are
11:22actually terrible with social media because they spend so much time in the work. And they also
11:27are very aware of the fact that 30 seconds is not enough to explain an issue. And so for that reason,
11:33you'll see that a lot of activists like don't have millions of followers. And if MLK was alive today,
11:38chances are he wouldn't be TikTok famous. Like he wrote his most famous letter from Birmingham jail,
11:44right? So he would be in prison, right? If not on the front lines, if not being chased by the FBI,
11:50and guess what? You're not going to be dropping your locations if you're on the FBI most wanted list.
11:54So let's be very clear. Just like as an activist, you know, I remember there was this partnership
12:00that I was considering and someone reached out and was like, you know, like we'd love to partner
12:03with you like as an activist. And they went on my page and were like, wow, like, you know,
12:07your page is like so glam. I think we were expecting, you know, more on the front line stuff.
12:12And I'm looking at her like, if I'm about to take over a bridge, why would I drop my location?
12:17Does that make any sense to you? Like, yeah, you're going to see me living my best life and
12:22continue to do that because black liberation is not for the consumption of white media. And it's
12:28also not for the consumption of trauma, right? And our trauma being seen as entertainment. And so
12:35I tried to separate the two. So Mary, I would love to know a little bit about how you stay so
12:42strongly aligned with your message of, you know, fighting for justice in the collegiate
12:49sphere in terms of student loans and the debt that students acquire after going to school, because
12:56your stats are incredible.
12:58Yeah. So one prior to even getting into this space, my, my work was centered around civil rights,
13:05right? And I kind of left the civil rights space to focus on free college, which is an issue that I
13:10really didn't learn about until I was actually an undergrad at a historically black college
13:14university. And I was spending 50 plus thousand dollars a year to attend my institution. And
13:22students that I went to school with were hungry. They were homeless. They were couch surfing.
13:27And I realized that this isn't just something that's happening at Spelman, but this is happening
13:31at HBCUs literally all across the country. And, you know, I realized that this is an issue at HBCUs that
13:41we don't talk about, right? Like our institutions are underfunded. Students are literally putting their
13:47families in debt. I know for me personally, my mom will never be able to take a student loan out from my
13:52brother because I was just Spelman, right? And the fact that I, she's in an unescapable debt right now.
13:59Um, and it bears me down because I'm like, I'm going to have to pay for her student loans too,
14:03right? Her parent plus loans too. Um, that's very, very stressful on top of my, you know,
14:08whatever situation, right? Um, how many loans I took out to go to school. Um, you know, recently,
14:13Tennessee state university and even, um, BCUs and, um, and Maryland won a lawsuit, uh, against the state
14:22department because, um, historically black college universities in those states were not receiving the
14:28same amount of funding as the predominantly white institutions, right? Like it is all systemic.
14:33It is all racial justice, but this is something that we don't really align with the work, but it
14:38exists. Um, and that's when I realized, like, we have to erase the shame. We have to begin to talk
14:45about it. And that's when I dedicated my life, uh, literally to free college and college affordability
14:50for black students.
14:51Zayana student activists have been at the forefront of new age civil rights movements,
14:56you know, the forefront of activism, particularly when it comes to calling out the systems that
15:02foster injustice. So do you think today's leaders are tapped into the power of their voices are tapped
15:08in to the power of young black voices, um, and are leading towards change?
15:12Yeah. So I think first there have always been young people on the front lines of every progressive
15:19movement. And so I think that to remember that is to remember that we do have power no matter how
15:24young we are. Um, but then also remaining grounded in the foundation that has been laid by the earlier
15:30generations. So I think that really creating intergenerate intergenerational movements and
15:35coalitions is so important because like we learn from their work. I think that when I'm going to YDSA
15:42meetings or when I'm going to other, um, types of organizing forums, we're always referencing texts that
15:48are 50, 60 years old. Um, and so those are the people who have given us a very radical
15:54perspectives to do the work that we do. Um, but I think now Gen Z is very aware of our voice. I think
16:01we're using social media, we're leveraging other platforms to make sure that we're having the most
16:06important conversations. Um, but we're also remembering that, you know, we deserve a seat at the
16:11table where the actual decisions are being made. And so I think that there are an abundance of youth
16:16councils and youth advisory boards, but truly we need to, I think, use the idea of bringing young
16:22people to the table as again, a lens by which for every single issue and every single room where
16:27decisions are being made, there are young people present. Um, but at the, in the same breath,
16:31I would say that there should also be, um, a diverse range of young voices. So we need, um, young voices
16:38who come from untraditional, um, backgrounds, right? We need young voices who are not just at
16:44PWIs that are high ranking or, um, or who are not just from Ivy league institutions. We need young
16:50people who, you know, were raised by grandma or who come from a family background where there is some
16:56generational trauma to unpack. And those are the people who have expertise on the lived experiences
17:02for those communities that we want to serve the most. So my real idea of how we can really shift
17:09that is by for every, again, for every issue, making sure that we have the most marginalized people in
17:14the room. And so if that looks like young trans women, if that looks like having low-income students
17:20in present in the room, if that looks like single young mothers, then I think that those are the
17:24people who we need to make sure are present before we even start the conversation.
17:27So my last question is what's one thing that we can do to help you guys out and to support the
17:47movements that we're focused on? Where can we learn a little bit more information about you?
17:51To support the movements, the best thing that you can do is listen to black women. And I always say
17:59that, um, I would say trust black women, amplify the voices of black women organizers. Um, every
18:05couple of weeks, I feel like there's a new call to action. So I can't necessarily say that this is
18:10what you are supposed to do all of the time, because I think times change. And then I would say,
18:14as far as to stay up to date on what's happening, because again, midterm elections are right around the
18:19corner. You can find my work at Freedom March NYC and me on Instagram, specifically at the Chelsea
18:25Miller. Of course, sign an appeal for HBCU college affordability to push Congress to make college
18:32free for both community college students, as well as students at all minority serving institutions.
18:37That includes tribal colleges, universities, as well as HBCUs. Um, and I would also say, you know,
18:44Chelsea mentioned something earlier. She said that a lot of young people disengage from the political
18:48process. The reason why you're not engaged is because we're waiting for you. Like every young
18:53person that is amazing that I see, I'm like, you know what, you should run for office. Like,
18:58call me at Mary Pet Hector, um, on Twitter, Instagram, let me support your campaign. Um,
19:04because we need young people like you, uh, to really shake things up. Um, and we need a power shift.
19:10I love that. I absolutely agree. Register to vote. Um, but also find a mutual aid effort
19:17in your community, find a black organizer in your community, ask them, can you buy them a meal?
19:22Can you volunteer for their thing for their direct action? I think that making sure that as we, um,
19:28support policy and as we sign up to be, to do our civic duties, that we also show up in our
19:34communities as well. Um, and you can find me on Instagram as I said, so, and on Twitter at Zionna B.
19:39Awesome. Thank you guys so much. This has been a very informative panel. I can't wait for the
19:46Girls United community to be able to hear about all the amazing things that you guys are doing,
19:51but aside from that, what they can do to embed this in their work, what they can do to ensure
19:56that they're having these types of conversations with their friends and really thinking about
20:01the themes that we spoke about, like, you know, equality, not, you know, not being unilateral.
20:07There's so many different things that are connected to the systems that lead to oppression,
20:11right? Uh, how to use social properly, separating black trauma from, from the ways in which people
20:19consume black content or the ways in which people consume the idea of all of blackhood. So thank you
20:25guys so much for this discussion. It was amazing. It was very informative. Um, yes. And I just want
20:32you to know that the Girls United team appreciates you and we love you and we've got your back always.
20:36So if you guys ever need anything, please let us know. We would love to be able to support and
20:41promote all the work that you guys are doing. Thank you. And thank you for being a great moderator,
20:47Sophia. You are appreciated.
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