By Sofia Williams
News Editor
Junior Armaan Shivpuri is working to combat inequality and prejudice in the Manhattan Beach community, one discussion at a time. The trailblazing 17-year-old held a town hall meeting on May 7 centered around the conversations of diversity, inclusion, fairness and justice.
According to Shivpuri, it is important for everyone to recognize and address racism and inequality in their community. One standout incident for Shivpuri that demonstrated the prevalence of these issues was when he was called a terrorist in middle school because he is a person of color, says Shivpuri. According to Shivpuri, this encounter sparked his passion for creating a more inclusive and fair community for both students and adults.
“The event was inspired by my participation at the Manhattan Beach Community Church, where I have been attending since the sixth grade,” Shivpuri said. “It has really been a platform for me to talk about [my experiences with racism and prejudice]. I wanted to give the city of Manhattan Beach the same platform, so [members of the community] could talk about their stories as well.”
Despite being driven by his and others’ experiences concerning racism and inequality, Shivpuri said the path to bring his event to reality was long. To gain the support of the Manhattan Beach City Council in his event, Shivpuri had to make connections with affluent community members and Mira Costa students alike to increase his credibility and following.
“I started by talking to Jason Boxer [a member of the MBUSD Board of Trustees], who put me in touch with Jen Fenton [another MBUSD Board of Trustees member],” Shivpuri said. “I was then put in touch with Dr. Anthony Lee, a former professor of African and African American studies at UCLA, who was the keynote speaker at my event. I also interviewed [Chloe Crounse and Maddie Feng] from the Asian Cultural club, Ameena Campbell and Sierra Pickering from the Black Scholars Union, and Ezra Cohen from the Jewish Cultural club.”
According to Shivpuri, individuals and larger communities can continue to work to prevent injustice and further educate people about issues of racism and prejudice. Shivpuri aims to raise awareness about these issues in Manhattan Beach through outreach to the MB City Council and the public through his website, mb-indivisible.org.
“I think that learning about the different cultures in our community, possibly through a required ethnic studies class, is extremely important,” Shivpuri said. “I’d also strongly advise or even require that students join a culture club at school.”
According to Shivpuri, the themes of diversity and inclusion presented in the meeting are important to apply not only on a broad, city or country-oriented scale. It is imperative for individual Mira Costa students to understand the significance of issues such as racism and prejudice as well, Shivpuri said.
“Having diversity and being proud of who you are is important to individuals’ identities,” Shivpuri said. “For example, I’m a member of the Mira Costa Bands program. Even though [the program] is so diverse and we’re all different, we’re able to connect on such a deep level because of our common interests. [This connection] is something I hope everyone can experience.”
To become an advocate for any issue, Shivpuri emphasizes the importance of pushing yourself out of your comfort zone and considering others’ opinions. A large part of Shivpuri’s plan to raise awareness about prejudice and injustice was to spread the word and talk to as many people as possible, actions he said are necessary to make a difference.
“A [piece of advice] I’d give to those who want to advocate for [equality and justice] is to put yourself out there. I had to put myself out there and talk to people I didn’t know [to make the event a success],” said Shivpuri. “If you do this, you can accomplish a lot more than you think you can.”
According to Shivpuri, the over 70 families who attended the event left with a greater sense of the racism that is still prevalent in Manhattan Beach, as well as an increased understanding of the importance of antiracism. Shivpuri plans to continue hosting meetings, and said another event similar to last month’s is a definite possibility.
“I plan on hosting another [event] in the future to keep the momentum going, but I’m not sure about the specific timeline because I want to give people time to think and reflect on this [event] before moving on to other [initiatives],” said Shivpuri.
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