Every year on my birthday, my dad would take me out of school early just to go to a protest and we would walk for hours in the heat. I look back at the times I would go to these protests for undocumented people in Chicago and I never thought about how that was me being an activist. Thanks to my father, I stood up for people that were like my family, for those who immigrate for something better. Thanks to my father for teaching me not to be afraid of what I believe in and always stick to it.
I am an activist. Originally, I never wanted to label myself as an activist because of all of the negative stereotypes that I heard that were tied into being an activist. Senior year of high school I felt like I was having many issues with my identity. Many don't understand me when I say this, but it was a very difficult time for me. I was reflecting on all the programs, clubs, and sports I was in throughout high school and I felt like some weren't the "real" me. I often had many moments when I cried because I felt like I had no sense of identity of what things I liked, disliked, or what type of person I really wanted to be.
But, during my senior year of high school, I wasn't afraid to speak about issues that were important to me. It was then when I finally declared myself a feminist and an activist. I got my first tattoo and it means a lot to me because it is a matching tattoo with my sisters, and it represents our heritage and our grandmother. Before leaving for college, I got a piercing. On a retreat that I went to a couple of weeks ago, I explained how my tattoo and piercing mean more than just a tattoo and piercing to me; they were both the beginning of who I wanted to be. Throughout my senior year, I started to learn more about activism and feminism and it was then when I declared myself both. Senior year I went to a Trump rally to protest against him and I was in a teacher strike.
In previous articles that I have written, I have talked about my heritage, immigration, and racism. Everything that I express through my articles are topics that I am passionate about; I care about everything that is tied into what a minority can experience. Although I am at a predominately white college, I don't care what people have to say. I will forever stand up for any injustice that I see. Since I have been here, I have had some people tell me that they don't see the racism that occurs and that it is disrespectful to think this way. It isn't. I will never be sorry for saying what I am thinking. I was so scared for many years to say what I was thinking and senior year was when I stopped caring and started to speak up.
I have had many conversations with people here that agree with me, and obviously some don't, but wherever I go, someone won't agree with what I say. To the people that don't agree and have negative comments to say, I don't care. I'll take your negativity as something to motivate me more. Thank you to those that are negative because it gives me a perspective to see what type of things I should talk more about. No, I am not "only an activist by day." I am an activist all the time. I am constantly thinking about how I can improve and make others understand why I do this. I am an activist and I'm not afraid to say it.
