What Can I Do? Justice and Discrimination

Inspired by Vanita Gupta? Find out more about ways you can help.

• Facing History video clip: Student Raquel M.. Facing History student Raquel M. speaks at the 2006 New York Facing History Benefit Dinner about her experience as a student at the Facing History school in New York City. Raquel, who was one of the two students who interviewed Vanita Gupta for this website, reflects on her classroom experience, the profound impact the visit from Vanita had on her life, and her advocacy efforts regarding the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6639317519650670338)
  
  
• Facing History video clip: Dr. Terrence Roberts. Dr. Roberts speaks at the 2007 New England Benefit Dinner about his experiences in 1957. When he was a 15 year old eleventh grader, Dr. Roberts and eight other African American students became known as the Little Rock Nine--the first Black students to go to a formerly segregated public high school in Little Rock, Arkansas. (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8943154966067027218) 
  
  
• ACLU—Stand Up!. "The mission of the ACLU is to preserve all of these protections and guarantees: *Your First Amendment rights-freedom of speech, association and assembly. Freedom of the press, and freedom of religion supported by the strict separation of church and state. *Your right to equal protection under the law - equal treatment regardless of race, sex, religion or national origin. *Your right to due process - fair treatment by the government whenever the loss of your liberty or property is at stake. *Your right to privacy - freedom from unwarranted government intrusion into your personal and private affairs." (http://www.aclu.org/standup/index.html) 
  
  
• Amnesty International KIDS. "AI Kids' Urgent Actions, which are often about young people, AIKids' Special Focus Cases, and AIKids' Holiday or Summer Card Actions provide unique hands-on human rights educational opportunities for the home or classroom. The monthly AIKids' Urgent Action offers teachers and parents a chance to introduce children to letter-writing as an empowering tool." (http://www.amnestyusa.org/aikids/)
  
  
• CivilRights.org -- Student Activist Network. "A new student site that showcases critical student work in support of affirmative action and other important issues on campuses nationwide. The site will help students connect with one another in order to build a strong Student Activist Network. For students and driven by students, SAN encourages student activists to help shape content by submitting story ideas, news of activities on campus, and personal stories of activism." (http://www.civilrights.org/campaigns/student_activist/)
  
  
• Do Something: Discrimination. "Are you discriminated against? Do you discriminate against other people? The answer to this question is probably yes. Your religion, race, height, nationality, disabilitiy, and even your gender are all factors that all people make quick judgements about when they meet someone new. Unfortunately, many of these judgements are based on biases and assumptions." (http://www.dosomething.org/causes/discrimination)
  
  
• GenerationEngage. "GenerationEngage is built on three principles: Young people suffer not from a lack of interest, but from a lack of access; Our democracy should be a dialogue, not a monologue; The best investment we can make in the future of our democracy is in young leaders at the local level." (http://www.generationengage.org/index.html)
  
  
• Generation Why: Democracy and Human Rights. "Oxfam's work on democracy and human rights concentrates on what is sometimes known as 'voice poverty'. This is when poor people are denied the right to influence the decisions that affect their lives. By tackling this subtle form of poverty, Oxfam helps the voices of the poor to reach policy makers." (http://www.oxfam.org.uk/generationwhy/issues/democracy/)
  
  
• Idealist.org. "Over 45,000 nonprofit organizations from around the world use Idealist to list information about the work they do. This information includes their mission and how to contact them, volunteer opportunities, internships, resources, and services that they provide." (http://www.idealist.org/kt/)
  
  
• Mix It Up. "Mix It Up believes in the power of youth to create and sustain real change. We want to provide ideas and tools to help you break the walls of division in your school and community. Mix It Up is a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Teaching Tolerance program." (http://www.tolerance.org/teens/index.jsp)
  
  
• TakingITGlobal: Social Justice and Human Rights. "TakingITGlobal.org is a global online community, providing youth with inspiration to make a difference, a source of information on issues, opportunities to take action, and a bridge to get involved locally, nationally and globally." (http://www.takingitglobal.org/understanding/socialjustice)