"Celebrating Activist Identities this Morning at Academia Cuauhtli," by Angela Valenzuela, Ph.D.

This morning at Academia Cuauhtli (which means Eagle Academy in Nahuatl), the students are learning remotely on Zoom about activist identities. Taught by certified bilingual/dual language teachers, our Saturday school serves bilingual/dual language fourth- and fifth graders attending East Austin schools. This builds on a prior unit on "multiple identities." The next unit is on "migration identities"  and the spring, 2022 unit is on danza Mexica (or Aztec dance or ceremony). Indigeneity is threaded through the entire curriculum. We also don't police the language, but allow for translanguaging that way children are free to codeswitch and simply share what's in their minds or on their hearts. We also engage in singing and every lesson involves music of some kind. Today, it was activist music. Last week, mariachi, where students learned of Indigenous and Africa influences on this beloved genre.

The task today was for children to envision how can people work together to make a change in their community. The overarching questions address the role of power as laid out in a Powerpoint in Spanish:

• Who has the power?
• What do they do with it?
• What can you do when you see an injustice?
• With whom can you cooperate to pursue change?
  

It began with song played from a video that all should know titled, "No nos moveran," ("We Shall not be Moved"), followed by a focus on Dolores Huerta who came up with the phrase, "Si se puede!" / "Yes we can!" that Obama used in his campaign for the presidency. They also learned about how Dolores Huerta and César Chávez founded the  United Farmworkers Movement. Students view images and are asked to comment on what the images make them think about. Students comment on seeing slogans about labor unions that want to pass laws that support the rights of farmworkers. A teacher helps them to note that children are also at the protests such they they, too, can be directly involved.

A teacher asks if we ourselves can also help with these efforts. They children exclaim, "Yes, sí se puede!" A sense of joy and empowerment is in the air, teachers and children smiling. Dr. Chris Milk, a Texas State University professor who co-directs Academia Cuauhtli with me and develops the curriculum with our teachers, raises recent news on a weakening of child labor laws because of a lack of workers in the labor force and asks the question of whether this is fair to children. Children said that they didn't think that it would be fair.

Students then went into breakout rooms to discuss an important strike launched by the Austin community known as the 1968 "Economy Furniture Strike" where they get to see César Chávez again in images with the Austin Mexican American community that protests working conditions at the company. Then they see other images, both global and local, so that they can see people engaged in protest. 

Some of these include local independent scholar and activist Martha Cotera who is defending the Mexican American Cultural Center, as well as images from the Black Lives Matters, environmental activists, the Ethnic Studies movement, and the pro-immigrant rights "Families Belong Together" movements.

Then students were then given time to get assemble their materials for a collage activity where they are asked to make this topic of activism personal to them, answering the question through drawings and statements or slogans of "What are some things in their school or community that are not fair? What can you do to achieve change? The activity is free-flowing, allowing children to simply express through visuals their reflections. These are the kinds of statement that appeared on their collages.

• "Sí se puede cambiar el mundo." [It is possible to make change in the world.]
• "Pagos justos." [Fair wages]
• "Diversity." "Celebrate diversity."
• "Mexicanos necesitan la educación." [Mexicans need education.]
• "Mexicanos pueden hacer cosas." [Mexicans can do things.]
• "Educación bilingue es un derecho civil." [Bilingual education is a civil right.]
• "Ser bilingue es un superpoder."[Being bilingual is a super power.]
• "Familias juntas." [Families belong together.]
• "Save the trees."
• "Corn helps you."
• "Que orgullo ser bilingue." [Being bilingual makes us proud.]
• "Sí, podemos juntos." [Together, we can achieve.]
• "Every vote counts."
• "We all pay taxes. We have rights."

It's touching to see how the factors of their lives as members of an immigrant, vulnerable, working class community find expression in their comments, conveying the richness, challenges, and complexities of their lives as a minoritized group in Austin. We are so blessed to have our escuelita, our school.

Happy to share a few images from this morning.

-Angela Valenzuela