RISE 2022 High School Junior Student Panelist, Emiliano Juarez, Proving No One is Too Young to be a Change-Maker
Meet Emiliano, pictured above with Dr. Kim Hunter Reed (Louisiana's Commissioner of Higher Education) and Carol Carter (CEO, GlobalMindED) at RISE 2022 (Reagan Institute Summit on Education) where he was the panel “Students at Work”.
Emiliano, what is your personal narrative? What key moments in your life led you to where you are?
It started in the summer before 6th grade in 2017, when my mom signed me up for a program about youth advocacy & social justice, called the Westchester County Youth Councils (WCYC). Not knowing what those terms meant, I did not think that it would be the best fit for me, however, the decision to attend the first meeting paved the way for me to make lasting and impactful change within my community.
The topic we covered was food insecurity and food justice through cultivating a community garden at the Lanza Center where the group regularly met. The activity was a rich lesson about people that did not have access to healthy foods, and it was eye-opening experience for me. I also fell in love with gardening from that point on and I continued attending the WCYC meetings. As I learned more about societal issues and current events happening around the United States, I gained leadership, public speaking skills, and the ability to advocate for myself. We are able to meet local politicians in our area that are uplifting youth voices, speak to legislators for program funding, and show other youth that the WCYC is a great program to be a part of.
I continued this work up until the pandemic hit, and we were unable to meet in-person again or do any hands-on activism work. When we switched our meeting platform to Zoom, we discussed disparities in healthcare, the Covid-19 pandemic, and how Covid is hurting marginalized communities more than those that are better off. We also held our first virtual youth action training in 2020. This youth conference is about bringing youth from across Westchester County to learn and educate themselves of important social justice issues and current events happening in our community, our nation, and around the world. I presented the importance of colonizing new planets for the advancement of sciences and technologies in 2020. In 2021, I presented Medical Biases in the healthcare industry to Westchester teens, starting with the history of phrenology, the impacts of racism in the medical field, and how intersectionality plays a role in today's society. We will be holding another Youth Action Training for Westchester County teens on October 22nd, 2022 (for more information see the flyer below).
Come November 2021, I was scrolling on Instagram stories when an advertisement appeared to apply to a youth civics leadership program called the Youth Collaboratory. With a few days left to apply, I submitted an application. In December, I received a notification that I had been selected as one of 21 students from around the United States to be a part of the Youth Collaboratory. I had the opportunity to travel to Seattle, Washington, Washington D.C., and Los Angeles, California. I also got to participate in the National Civic Collaboratory, a group of civic catalysts from around the country working to make a difference in the communities they serve and to ultimately, build democracy.
This cohort of youth civic leaders all have amazing stories and experiences, and I am so glad I was able to meet all of them. This opportunity has shifted my perception of hope, and has definitely impacted my life in great ways. I have been able to implement my own power project as a result of this program within my own community, and I have found great success with the startup of the group I have created. My power project is about bringing youth together from across the political spectrum, and to bridge the political divide among these teens in order to pave a way to work across our differences.
I partnered with the WCYC to gather students from across Westchester County to convene in the White Plains Public Library, and to discuss the current events of gun violence around the country, and our personal experiences with gun violence. We met with the policy team at Sandy Hook Promise to better inform ourselves about gun violence and ways in which we are able to educate our community about gun violence. We also met with a parkland school survivor, founder of the MyVote Project, and co-organizer of the March for our Lives Movement, Sari Kaufman. She gave us important insight to how gun violence has impacted the people around her and how bipartisan support is essential in reforming todays gun laws for curbing the gun violence crisis. Through earlier efforts with the WCYC and speaking with local elected officials for program funding, we were able to secure $10,000 for youth engagement projects, and $20,000 for anti-violence projects in Westchester County.
Not too long after my first trip in March with the Youth Collaboratory, a friend in the YC presented an opportunity to participate in a youth advisory council for RISE 2022. I applied to be on the council, and I was accepted! We worked on brainstorming questions and topics we wanted to ask leaders across the country about the education system in the United States. We gave our insight, and feedback as youth about the current state of education around the country and in our communities, and we invited specific adults to be present at the summit who we thought were important for the conversations the panels would discuss. I was asked to be on a student panel, in-person in Washington D.C., and I gladly accepted the invitation to represent high schoolers across the country. I’m also very glad that I was able to represent first-generation voices on the stage that day as a Hispanic-American of Mexican descent. I learned a lot from the panels that day, and I’m so glad I was able to speak in front of such important people who heard my voice and opinion.
What does Hispanic Heritage Month signify and mean to you?
Hispanic Heritage Month is very special to me, given that I am a child of immigrant parents who came to the United States many years ago in search of a better life for me and my siblings. They endured through so much struggle of assimilating to a new culture, learning a new language, and witnessing firsthand accounts of xenophobia in this country. They gave up their dreams and goals, in order to provide for their families. I am beyond grateful for my parents as they have struggled through so much pain of giving back to me and my siblings, that my job is to make them proud and to achieve the dreams I have for myself and to make their struggle, worth the goals that I have for myself. We often tend to forget where we come from, and who shaped the person we are today. Although I have done a lot of work on my own, and I have spearheaded a lot of projects in my community, it is important to recognize that there have been a multitude of people who have helped me throughout the process of becoming.
Hispanic Heritage Month is also very special in that it does not traditionally start at the first of October or the first of November, and that is due to the start of multiple countries independences’ in South America from European colonizers. This month is about uplifting Latino voices, and giving us a platform to address our concerns and needs as a community for those in office, and those working towards a more inclusive environment for Latinos. This month also recognizes the contributions that the Latino community has given back to the U.S. such as being heavily involved in the workforce and contributing back to the federal GDP and economy. Through electing local Latino leaders into office, we add a perspective that addresses the concerns and needs of a community that is often not heard from, yet they contribute so much to the country. This month also highlights our cultures and the different backgrounds from our community. Every Hispanic flag is rich in history and traditions, and it’s an opportunity for non-Hispanics to learn about our customs, values, and truths.
Personally speaking, I love it when I get to showcase my Mexican culture to my peers. I display traditional foods from my culture, show-off my singing skills as a part of the mariachi group at my high school, and educate others about important traditions such as Día De Los Muertos and Cinco de Mayo. My parents are from Puebla and Michoacán, and come from small towns. I love when I mention these places to people who have never heard of them because it’s representing the culture that I am from. That is what is most powerful about this month as well; it gives us a platform to display and share our cultures with non-Hispanics.
As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, what comments and suggestions do you have for our community to better support Latinos?
Amplify Latino youth voices. Address the needs of young Hispanics around the United States and around the world. A major proponent of supporting our community is having young people be highlighted about the important work they are doing. Latino representation is key for the making of future leaders. I remember in middle school I was very inspired by AOC’s work and where she came from. She built herself a platform, and she was inspired by adults and mentors in her life. Through amplifying these young Latinos, and giving them the resources they need to be successful in life, we can help make them into the future leaders of tomorrow. It is essential that young Latinos, like me, are given the platform to showcase the positive contributions that we have given back to our community. Connect these individuals with opportunities in a variety of subjects ranging from STEM to politics. We need more representation in these areas of interest. The more Latinos in these areas of work, the more we can give back to the communities we come from.
Follow along with Emiliano's activism efforts:
Instagram: @emiliano_juarezzz
TikTok: @emiliano_juarezzz
Looking for more ways to get involved? Follow some of the organizations Emiliano is involved with on Instagram!
@wcyc (Westchester County Youth Councils)
@fsw (Family Services of Westchester)
@citizenuniversity (Youth Collaboratory)
@wphsmariachi (Mariachi Juvenil Los Tigres)
@reaganinstitute (Youth Advisory Council for Reagan Institute Summit on Education 2022)
