Sometimes it is easy to take for granted the privileges that students at McIntosh High School receive. Senior Sumena Nair has coordinated a new chapter of Amnesty International, an international human rights organization to give students an opportunity to allocate those resources for a cause.
Advocating for humanitarian aid, gun reform and climate protections, Amnesty International strives for systemic change for human rights policy and education through activist groups, local communities and schools. Throughout the year, the club plans to have its members petition for change and host educational meetings to inform students about global events and various humanitarian projects.
Amnesty used to be one of the most active clubs at McIntosh before it disbanded. Co-founded in 1990 by then-sophomore Kristen Mayo, one of the club’s several activities was writing letters complaining of prisoners jailed in inhumane conditions because of race, religion or beliefs.
“People seem to think Amnesty involves a lot of work, but all it takes is a simple letter to save a life,” Mayo said, in the 1992 Legend yearbook.
Raghav Ratkalkar, the new vice president, noted that Mayo’s statement still stands true despite the time that has elapsed since then.
“Anyone can make a little change. And all know that we’re high schoolers, we’re busy with our lives and schedules, but just devoting some time out of your day to realize some of the human rights issues and trying to see what you can do to support causes is very important,” Raghav said.
Nair, the new club president, refounded the club to activate students.
“I think that everyone should join. It’s a lot of fun, we’ll get to know so much. And you know, most clubs you’re doing something for yourself, whether it’s like getting yourself community service hours to put on your college app, but this, you can make a direct impact on the real world,” Nair said.
Having grown up in an underprivileged community in Botswana, South Africa, Nair founded the club because she wants others to have the necessities that saved her grandfather’s life from a heart attack.
“We went to the hospital in Botswana, and they didn’t have enough resources to provide for him, so we had to drive all the way to South Africa just to save his life. Imagine we didn’t have the money to drive down. There’s so many people who don’t even have what we had. So I thought, ‘I want to do something,’” Nair said.
History teacher and club sponsor Hillary Allen plans to engage members in Write for Rights. The program is a writing campaign where students will write petitions to government officials in November. Moreover, all affiliated student groups will convene and decide on an issue during the National Week of Student Action in March.
“As a history teacher, I’ve seen a lot of people’s human rights get taken for granted, and I’ve seen a lot of people in history get treated very terribly, and I think that it’s important that everyone has human rights. So I think it’s really important that people at your age start young, fighting for what you believe is right,” Allen said.
The club meets after school in room C211 twice a month on Mondays, and its next meeting is scheduled for Oct. 20.
