Kennedy Green, Nya Collins, Jade Fuller and Emma Rose Smith during the demonstration. (Courtesy of Alex Kent)
Read then entire article here at The Lily. In a matter of a few days, a group of six girls, ages 14 to 16, organized the 10,000-person protest.
The girls behind Teens4Equality haven’t slowed down since the success of their protest. Right now, they’re working on a Juneteenth celebration with food trucks, speakers and performers — something to bring people together as the nation commemorates the end of slavery on June 19.
In addition to finishing a book of poetry she’s writing — which largely centers on the experience of feeling forced to grow up too quickly as a black girl — Thomas anticipates she’ll be busy organizing more events throughout the summer. Fighting against systemic racism feels long-term, sustained.
“We’re going to be dedicating our time to this to make sure things actually happen,” Thomas says. “I want people to know that things will change and things will be better in the future.”