Local event celebrates 50th anniversary of Civil Rights Act

By Claire Bugos and Carmen Vescia, Managing Editors

Carlmont High School hosted Civil Rights activist and member of the Little Rock
Nine Minnijean Brown Trickey, local Congresswomen Jackie Speier and Barbara Lee
and Stanford professor Gavin Wright, to discuss the 50 year anniversary of the Civil
Rights Act Oct. 29.
Speier moderated the panel of speakers, who discussed their experiences and the
history of the Civil Rights Movement, as well as the progress yet to be made. They urged
the audience to get involved in the continuing fight for equality.
We cant let death stop us...We said we will die for this. I dont want you to die
for anything, but I do want you to take a stand, Brown Trickey said. You must not
allow yourselves to be desensitized to violence to be persuaded not to vote.
Sequoia students and staff were present, including seniors Alicia Menendez
Brennan and Nina Rosenblatt, who met Brown Trickey on Sojourn to the Past.
I hope students understand how important it is to act now, Menendez Brennan
said. Its no longer old-fashioned marching in the street for archaic things that dont
matter anymore; its relevant social activism that can really make a difference for us
now, and I think thats the importance and the urgency thats lost on our generation.
The event, which was organized by three Carlmont Economics and Government
teachers, aimed to inform and inspire the community with the testimonies of those who
played influential roles in the Civil Rights Movement.
People sometimes say you were lucky to be living at that time, the issues were so
clear, the right and wrong was so clear. In a way thats true, [but] they didnt seem so
clear at the time, Wright said.
Wright spent a summer in the 60s living in North Carolina and educating the
African American community about voting rights and has since dedicated his career to
studying economics, with a focus on the Civil Rights Movement.
Brown Trickey will come to Sequoia on Friday to speak about her experiences and
emphasize the importance of kindness and the power of language.

Minnijean is magical and compelling, and she reminded me of the power of

words, personal stories and human connections, said Sequoia English teacher Emily
DeVoe. I hope to brainwash my impressionable young students just as Minnijean
suggested.