Jack Petocz, Dustin Lance Black, Brian Keith Jackson, Reno Gold, Queen Latifah, Sampson McCormick, Leo Herrera, Pete Buttigieg, and More: #GAYNRDDAILY

“If you don’t feel like you can protest or act or organize by yourself or you’re scared to speak up, you don’t have to do this alone. There are a lot of people behind you.” @Jack_Petocz talks to Teen Vogue ⤵️ https://t.co/Tz5IiAAhrR

— Teen Vogue (@TeenVogue) June 13, 2022

Over the last two years, he’s spoken out and demanded the board change practices and regulations that harm students, including the banning of LGBTQ+ books and more. He’s held meetings and worked on infographics to alert people of what’s going on — using social media to organize with other students who seek positive change. Jack says he realized “these people in positions of power aren’t here to hear students, they aren’t here to serve us, they’re here in their interests,” after a school board member filed a criminal report because libaries in her school district had copies of a queer memoir. In response, he organized a protest outside of the school board meeting, where he encouraged students to make their voices heard. He also started an online campaign to have 300 of the books — George M. Johnson’s All Boys Aren’t Blue — donated to the district so they could distribute them.

Moving forward, he’s going to continue to organize fellow students who will soon be 18 and will be able to vote against those same school board members when they come up for election. “We’re providing those on the ground opportunities, and getting students and young people to the ballot box,” he says, adding, “We have the power and a lot of these local elections, you see them separated by only a few hundred votes and if we can make up that gap, which I firmly believe Gen Z can, then we can unseat them and and support candidates we feel reflects our values.”

While administrators are attempting to silence openly queer and trans students, Jack is proud of how his peers have mobilized to fight back. “I truly could not have done this work without the incredible work of other Florida activists such as Zander Moricz, Javier Gomez, Abbie Garetson, Will Larkins and more. Their advocacy keeps me going and wanting to promote change,” he says. “I think that walkouts are a really great way for students to recognize, engage in and fight for what’s right. They foster a collective spirit. Collective work lets other students and young people know you’re not alone. If you don’t feel like you can protest or act or organize by yourself or you’re scared to speak up, you don’t have to do this alone. There are a lot of people behind you.”

PHOTO OF THE DAY by Slava Mogutin.

 

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COMEDIAN & PRODUCER SAMPSON MCCORMICK‘s B-Boy Blues is streaming on BET now.

“B-Boy Blues” is a love letter to the black gay community and an opportunity for the black community at large to celebrate with us—it’s streaming on BET Plus! Watch it and be sure to tell your friends—thanks for supporting our film! pic.twitter.com/hW6f4FPpVu

— Sampson (@OfficialSampson) June 12, 2022