Washington State NAACP Youth Council

Who We Are and What We Do

The WA NAACP Youth Council is a coalition of youth, primarily youth of Color, from across King County working for racial justice in Washington's public education system. The WA NAACP Youth Council creates space for youth to speak their truth and make change that will not only affect them but students in the future. Too often the voices of youth of Color are dismissed or tokenized; the WA NAACP Youth Council fights for a place at the decision-making table, writing its own narrative and working for the following demands:

Mandate Ethnic Studies, Pre-K to 12th, and Fully-Staff Ethnic Studies Departments in Every District
Mandate Thorough and Frequent Staff Racial Equity Trainings
Increase Voice of Youth, Especially BIPOC Youth, in Decision-making at All Levels of Public Education
Hire and Retain More BIPOC Educators
Incorporate Restorative Justice Practices in Police-Free Schools Instead of Problematic, Outdated Discipline Practices
Support Black Lives Matter at School Actions
Increase Access to Opportunities and Mental Health Services
Abolish the Highly Capable Cohort Program
Mandate Climate Change Education, Emphasizing Environmental Racism, and Dramatically Decrease the Carbon Footprint of Public Education
Reduce Gun Violence Targeting Black and Brown Communities

Founded in 2017 by then Seattle/King County NAACP Education Chair Rita Green and Seattle educators Jon Greenberg and Sooz Stahl, the WA NAACP Youth Council launched to the public on Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 21, 2018, to center youth of Color, a demographic routinely ignored, and center racial justice, issues too often relegated to the margins in public education.

Since our founding, we have contributed to many racial justice wins, including:

Co-writing with the Seattle School Board one of the first resolutions in the country to support the Black Lives Matter at School movement
Spearheading the drafting, revising, passing, and implementation of Policy 1250, which adds students to the Seattle School Board
Removing a superintendent who was working against ethnic studies and racial justice
Leading numerous workshops and trainings for educators and the public on how to replace a racist educational system to one centering racial justice (see “Our Impact”)
Advancing our demands and spreading awareness through local publications, including South Seattle Emerald and Real Change
Contributing to the first annual “Healthy Vikings” Rainier Beach High School community event, bringing awareness and mindset change through an integrated approach to health and wellness, environment, social and climate justice that solidified new community partnerships with Planet Fitness, Brown Dove, Bike Works, SE Network, and Urban Family
Contributing to the removal of the SBAC graduation requirement, which disproportiounately impacted students of Color
Exposing the inequities in Washington Interscholastic Athletics Assocation

Community Partnerships:

To advance our demands, the WA NAAACP Youth Council has partnered with countless educators, organizations and conferences, including but not limited to:

The Seattle School Board
Washington Ethnic Studies NOW
The Alliance for Gun Responsibility
University of Washington College of Educations' Secondary Teacher Education Program
Teaching Equity South Sound Conference
and many more listed here!

Connect with the WA NAACP Youth Council

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Email: wastatenaacpyouth@gmail.com and jon.t.greenberg@gmail.com