The Black Lives Matter Movement and its place in Melrose 

After months of constant news coverage that entirely focused on the coronavirus, all of that changed overnight after the video of George Floyd’s murder surfaced throughout social media. Suddenly, the coronavirus was somewhat put to the side by news channels as there were now bigger things at hand, huge protests across every major city in the US, demanding change and justice not just for Floyd, but for the hundreds of other Black people who have been killed at the hands of police brutality. Many people have taken to social media to call for action, and during the first week of June in particular, it was impossible to scroll through an Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook feed without seeing multiple posts in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. Those supportive posts came in the form of powerful artwork, infographics, news articles. Some posted just a black square on June 2nd, that was meant to symbolize the act of going on “mute,” in order for suppressed voices to be able to take center stage, and simply be heard. Something that should be a right for everyone in the first place. 

A multitude of Melrose High Students have come up with many effective and powerful ways to contribute to this necessary fight against police brutality and systemic racism. Their actions include: collecting donations for impactful organizations by selling their clothes online, making shirts and stickers to raise money and awareness, and organizing a city-wide peaceful rally. Jackson Sorice, ‘22, was one of the four students who came together to put the Melrose Standout for Racial Equity into motion. He was joined by Cassandra Tervalon and Grace Amato of Melrose, and Theo Cheever of Wakefield, fellow student organizers of the event. Sorice knew that he needed to bring something to Melrose as soon as he heard of everything going on across the country, explaining that “I’ve always been passionate about BLM and Black Power in general. I’m half Black myself so it’s always been very important to me. So I’d say I’ve wanted to organize some sort of event in Melrose for a long time… in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death, I realized I could no longer be silent. I had to do something.” The standout was received very well by the Melrose community, with an estimated 1200 to 1500 people in attendance. 

Many MHS students have taken to using their talents for good in order to support the fight for racial equity and justice. Camille Wahl, ‘21, owner of her own digital art and sticker business, with merchandise available on her Etsy shop called “Camille’s Own,” designed three new stickers in order to raise money to donate to the cause.  She writes on her instagram, @camillesown, that “100% of their profits go to four different nonprofit organizations helping with the BLM movement.” Additionally, Nora Daly, ‘20, Chelsea Otaluka, ‘20, and Grace Donahue ‘21, designed Black Lives Matter t-shirts with the help of Ella Fleming, ‘21, and Follow Your Art of Melrose, in order to raise money and awareness as well. Each shirt is $20 and can be purchased through contacting them on their Instagrams. Not only do the shirts convey a powerful message in itself, with “Black Lives Matter” written on the front and a raised fist on the back, their black and orange tie dyed design helps to make the shirts stand out and can be considered as a thoughtful design element and a job well done. 

Nellie Jordow, ‘20, and her sister Hannah, ‘16, thought outside of the box for another way to raise money for donating, coming up with a creative yet extremely effective idea. They created an Instagram account for selling their slightly used but still especially cute clothes at low prices, with the promise that 100% of the profits would be donated to organizations in support of BLM. Within the first day, the majority of their postings had been sold and they also received a flood of clothing donations from friends to put up for sale, to keep the process going. In the first week alone they raised $940 that went to Campaign Zero and Teen Empowerment. The two sisters are still uploading new items for sale each day, under the account @hannahnelliescloset.

These students have certainly gone above and beyond to effectively support this movement, but there are many more positive steps people can take to help that don’t require reaching into one’s wallet. Sorice feels that “the first step in being an ally in this situation is being able to sit down and have a conversation and listen. These topics can be difficult and uncomfortable but to create change we have to be willing to talk about them and listen to each other.” 

Being open to taking in new information and hearing about other perspectives is an invaluable skill necessary for making change. In the long run, we need to change what’s inside of us to see a real difference on the outside, and we need to constantly hold ourselves accountable. Change can feel overwhelming, especially in current times where we can’t help but focus on the injustice. But I urge us all to focus on the small, tangible actions that need to be taken to make that change, and it is clear that many Melrose High students have already taken up the task.

Pictured: Wahl's Stickers and Daly, Donohue, and Otaluka's BLM shirts (images from Instagram)

Additional Image Credits: Grace Donohue, Haley Smith, Jackson Sorice