Seeds of Kinship: Building Intergenerational Advocacy for Digital Liberation
What does it mean for children to learn on land where Black life has long been punished rather than protected?
What does it mean for children to learn on land where Black life has long been punished rather than protected?
This question has shaped the work of two fellows in the No Data About Us Without Us fellowship — Tammie Lang Campbell and Chinelo Dike — who came to their work on youth surveillance from different generations but the same place: Fort Bend County, Texas.
Ms. Tammie and Chinelo’s paths first crossed in 2020 when Chinelo reached out to her for guidance and support concerning her efforts to organize a peer advocacy group to confront discriminatory policies in Fort Bend School District. As a longtime parent advocate, Ms. Tammie had spent decades defending children from punitive school discipline in Fort Bend. Chinelo, then a high school student and co-founder of the Fort Bend ISD Equity Coalition, was busy formulating a set of demands for the district — clear, specific changes that might make their schools places of care rather than control.
Ms. Tammie served as a mentor and sounding board, helping Chinelo think through how to make her demands heard.
Over time, their bond of mentorship evolved into mutual learning, and in their fellowship...
This essay has been developed as part of the No Data About Us Without Us, a research fellowship developed by the Edgelands Institute and NOTICE Coalition.
