Parent Teacher Magazine Union County Public Schools Sept/Oct 2018 | Page 15

Monroe High senior fuels passion for social justice in ACLU summer program
Monroe High senior Charleen Chavez has
been passionate about social justice since
she was in middle school and even plans to
pursue a career in public policy in the future.
So it probably wasn’t a surprise to most
people when they found out that Charleen not
only applied to attend but also earned a full
scholarship to this summer’s American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU) Summer Institute in
Washington, D.C.
Over the course of eight days, Charleen
joined nearly 1,000 other students from across
the country for an intensive firsthand learning
experience about social justice and civil
liberties. During the program, Charleen and
her peers had the opportunity to engage with
activists and observe policy development on
Capitol Hill.
Check out what Charleen said about what
she learned during her time in the program:
On why she wanted to participate in
the ACLU Summer Institute: I became
interested in social justice in middle school,
when I started questioning things around me.
As a Hispanic- American, I noticed a lack of
representation of people in power. All voices
need to be represented in government in order
to strive for fair and equal policy.
I recently learned about the ACLU and that
it is a nonpartisan organization with justice
as its main pillar. When I heard about the
organization’s summer advocacy program,
I thought it was a great opportunity that I
should pursue.
On what they did during the program:
The ACLU summer advocacy program included
seminars and panel sessions with lawyers,
journalists and professors who specialize in
civil rights, immigration rights and more.
We visited The National Mall, National Air
and Space Museum, National Museum of
African American History and Culture and the
Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery as well as
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and Korea War
Veterans Memorial. Being with nearly 1,000
teenagers from every state who are passionate
about social justice and the public policies that
affect us was the most memorable part of the
experience.
On what she’s learned while in the
program: I have learned that Americans
have different views of what freedom is and that our various
backgrounds and experiences help shape that view. The most
important thing that I’ve learned is how resilient and bold
teenagers can be when all is at risk and when there is something
worth fighting for. That passion makes tangible change.
Parent Teacher Magazine • Sept/Oct 2018 • 13