Whitney High's Anthology: Hear Us Roar: Black Lives Matter

This years last edition of the Whitney High School Newspaper The Wildcats Tale was dedicated to the student bodys advocacy for the Black Lives Matters movement In the span of three days the school newspaper collected 26 total submissions ranging from artwork to poetry and writing from both faculty and students However this publication is unique as Isabel Sarmiento and I who both serve as the clubs co-presidents made the executive decision to open the submissions to all Whitney students not solely club members The purpose of the publication is to amplify Black voices and provide a more formal platform for student activism awareness spread reports of local protests and support for the movement

Although every previous issue of the newspaper was edited by our student editors and section leads the school administration ultimately had final say in whether we were allowed to publish certain controversial topics However for this Black Lives Matter issue the school administration has respectfully concluded that students writings advocating for antiracism and racial equality is a human rights issue that cannot be censored Thus assistant principal Dr Larry Natividad and principal Mr John Briquelet allowed students to publish their original unedited work to avoid diluting their emotional and powerful words

Students submitted words of sentiments towards victims of police brutality in the month of May and called for action to combat micro-racism in a school setting Active student protestors and organizers wrote about their participation in marches and peaceful protests or at-home advocacy including petition-signing and donating Those who attended local peaceful protests wrote about their first-hand accounts As Kayla Almero senior at Whitney High states To the victims of police brutality their families and the Black community: I stand with you I may not be Black but I stand with you One does not have to be Black to know that the brutality and discrimination that Black people face everyday is absolutely inhumane and disgusting

As submissions were turned in Isabel and I realized that our publication was less of a newspaper edition and more of an anthology as we were not publishing strictly articles or columns but instead a collaborative collection of both writing and artwork An anthology requires a cover so we asked our artisticallytalented friend and classmate Ashley Gong to design one that represents an alliance between our school mascot which is a wildcat with a black panther Because Ashley is an active supporter of the movement she was happy to utilize her talents in support of the cause

The cover is in honor of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor two unfortunate victims of police brutality their names wrap around a shadowed fist the emblem of the Black Lives Matter movement The title Hear Us Roar: Black Lives Matter and George Floyds last words I cant breathe surround it The anthology can be read at: https:// bitly/3f4vaBH