Image is of Amelie, a FEEST Student Organizer.
Dev, our Communications Manager, had a chat with one of our youth leaders, Amelie (They/She)! Amelie is 15, a plant parent, passionate about justice, and a sophomore at Chief Sealth High School! Check out the full interview below:
Dev: Hi Amelie! So, why did you decide to join FEEST?
Amelie: I joined FEEST mostly because of the moment I was in, in my life. I saw the opportunity and said: You know what? I want to be a part of something. I’ve always had a big interest in changing things for the better and for the people that need it. So I saw this pop-up and said, you know what? Let’s give this a try!
Dev: That’s wonderful, I’m so glad you decided to join FEEST! What do you vision for yourself in the future? Tell me about your dreams!
Amelie: There are a lot of things that aren’t just, or good. Things that can definitely be better, like everywhere. Not just better for others, but also better for me! People need to learn how to do better and make things better. I mean, it’s kind of a mess. My dream would be me being able to teach people how to be better, and how they can teach others to be better. It’s about humans being better humans. Humans need to learn how to make things better, and I want to make things better. I want to look at the way spaces are created. I want to create spaces that are inclusive, and loving. Spaces that teach you, that care for everyone and make sure everyone is good. Humans need to learn how to be loving.
Dev: 100% agree Amelie, well said! What does Youth-Led Organizing mean to you?
Amelie: For me, I feel like “Youth are the Future.” is said a lot, but I feel like it’s not focused on. Youth-Led Organizing is how to make it that way. If you want to make sure that youth are the future in the right ways. It’s very expected for youth to grow up we’re expected to already know how to make decisions. Youth ARE the future, but how are you going to know how to do that, without community? That’s what youth-led organizing means to me. Yes, it’s about getting to a goal, but it’s also about learning HOW to get to that goal, so you can make it a lifelong thing.
Dev: Yessss Amelie! Thank you for sharing that. In the same light as youth organizing, this year FEEST Student Organizers have been meeting with decision-makers to talk about Mental Health Support in our schools. Is there anything you want to share about Mental Health?
Amelie: Mental Health has to be valued more because it’s not seen as a priority. Mental Health is at the beginning of everything, it’s at the start of everything! Back to humans being better humans. Everyone does something for someone else. For example, you go out and you work somewhere, you’re giving people services, right? You can’t give a service if you are on your own, are not good, so mental health is at the top of the list for like, anything. It should be a priority to go on and be good. If you yourself are not good, then you can’t help others, and because of that mental health needs to be prioritized.
Dev: Phenomenal, thank you, Amelie, beautifully said! Is there anything else you want to share with the people?
Amelie: I also want to say that I’m glad this is youth-led. It’s a good thing we are focusing on mental health, and this is a good way to address youth being the future. Mental health is the basis of people being okay to build that future, to just live.
Dev: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me Amelie, and sharing your thoughts on how we can make a difference while we are here!
Thank you for reading Amelie’s Youth Spotlight! ?
In case you didn’t know, FEEST is in the middle of our Spring Donation Drive! We are raising funds to continue our work in the Highline & Seattle Public Schools District.
If you wanna support:
? Our 2022 Organizer Summer Camp! ?
? Paying our Student Organizers & Staff ABOVE Minimum Wage! ?
? FEEST building strong school communities! ?
? Us getting closer to realizing our mission, vision, and values for a better world for working-class youth of color and their families ?
Donate today! All size donations are meaningful to us, there is no amount that goes unappreciated.