Feature Photo Courtesy Of: Justin Morris – Rangeview seniors (from left to right) Archan Kafley, Nina Boimbo, Blake Stephenson, Onyi Ozoma, Priscilla Karr, and Adwoa TKoduah sit outside a grocery store to fundraise. The students are raising money for their upcoming social justice trip to DC.
Recent events, such as the shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, national anthem protests, and most notably, the inauguration of President Donald Trump, have caused quite a stir in America. Many have felt that as we move further away from racial segregation, insufficient progress is being made in the push for equality for all races. For the next generation of voters, activists and difference makers these occurrences have ignited a desire for change for many, and that fire has spread to the Rangeview community.
From Rangeview’s own national anthem protests at assemblies and sports events, to “Black Lives Matter” t-shirts being worn throughout the school, students have found ways to voice their own opinions within the school. One senior, Jaelin Jones, wore a “Black Lives Matter”shirt as a pre-game warmup, distinguishing from herself from her teammates, who all wore shirts given to them. Another student, Adwoa TKoduah took action last week by removing an “All Lives Matter” poster that was placed in the lunchroom.
Onyi Ozoma, is taking his action plan to the next level. Ozoma is the mind behind Rangeview’s upcoming April Washington DC intersession trip, along with the help of social studies teachers Mrs. Walsh and Mrs. Westerdale. Ozoma is organizing a “social awareness” trip that will take students through historic landmarks in Washington DC., encouraging an appreciation of diversity and different cultures in an effort to “inspire hope for our generation in a turbulent time” as Ozoma put it. He also added in a Facebook post, “The trip is meant to be positive, unifying and teach us lessons of perseverance.”
Mrs. Walsh stated that “the purpose of the trip is to enhance the knowledge of our students in the history of social injustice, how these groups (survivors of the Holocaust, Native Americans) dealt with that, and how we can understand that history to make our community a better place to live and bring that back to Rangeview High School.”
The intercession visit will be organized through Explorica, and students will visit historic monuments and museums that not only highlight African American history, but the history of other groups who faced adversity as well. These sites include the Holocaust Museum, the American Indian Museum, the African-American Civil War Museum and Howard University.
Ozoma has recruited many other students who feel that there is a need to spread social awareness to join him on the expedition. One of those students, sophomore Dallas Johnson said “I think it’s an important trip to go on, especially with the election and inauguration, it made me realize…we have to come together as a country.”
The group has been working to fundraise for the expensive trip, and are using pathways like Snapraise, a well-known fundraising site, to fund their trip. The group has also used Twitter and Facebook to raise awareness for their efforts, as well as fundraising in person, asking for aid from others in person. They have reached out to locally owned businesses, news organizations, and Ozoma has even contacted both Oprah Winfrey and Ellen Degeneres, according to Mrs. Walsh.
The Raiders raised about $17,000 so far. Although the Snapraise has closed, the Raiders are still hoping to reach their $20,000 goal by April.
To donate to Rangeview’s Washington DC fund, contact Mrs. Walsh at [email protected]
Click here to for a link to their snapraise account to donate:
https://app.snap-raise.com/fundraisers/22236/participant/626547?share_type=facebook