Racial Reckoning in Our Roots
by Melissa Ceren

To represent the core ideals of social justice, the narratives and identities of the marginalized must be acknowledged front and center. The key for understanding social movements intersect a social identity and political perspective. In this visual art composition, the Willow tree depicts death; its branches are without leaves and the roots remain without growth. This represents the end of old ideals; the era of thriving racism, classism, inequality, and gender discrimination comes to an end with new generations from social conscious perspective. The roots of the tree display the various injustices and methods of reform. The emphasis on rehabilitation and education remain among the top priorities in regards to reform for a better future. The young child illustrates the generations of millennials and generation Z, who continue to recognize notions of structural, educational, and community violence. These generations are willing to fight the old cycles of hatred and oppression which plagued the United States for centuries if it means the promise of a better future. The scars on the girl represents the generational trauma in which millennials and generation Z endure. Taking action against injustice and oppression helps plant new roots towards recognizing and ending classist, racist, gender based, LGBTQ+, and all other forms of inequity. From an education perspective, new teaching methods, such as an emphasis on creative expression, learning accurate American history, understanding climate change, and taking out less focus on standardized testing, should be implemented in our education to co-construct knowledge in participatory action research to help better understand and change controversial issues in a macro level perspective. Education is key when it comes to understanding why the world is the way it is, and how we as a society should change to make this world a better place. Therefore, by uprooting these poisons in American society, we create a new path towards a better, safer, more stable environment for Black, Indigenous, and other people of color.