I’m So Proud of Y’all

This week, students across the Clark County School District stepped out of their classrooms and into their power. At schools including Desert Rose High School, Las Vegas Academy, and Canyon Springs, our young scholars organized and participated in walkouts to protest injustice and to stand in solidarity with immigrant communities. In doing so, they reminded our city—and our nation—that civic engagement is not reserved for adults or elected officials. It belongs to anyone courageous enough to act.

What makes this moment especially powerful is not simply that students walked out, but why they did. These young people are paying attention. They see the erosion of civil liberties, the normalization of cruelty in public policy, and the ways fear is weaponized against vulnerable communities. Rather than retreat into silence, they chose collective action. That decision deserves praise, protection, and respect.

Student-led movements have always played a critical role in American democracy. From the youth activists of the Civil Rights Movement who organized sit-ins and boycotts, to students protesting the Vietnam War, to the more recent movements for racial justice, immigrant rights, and gun safety—young people have consistently been among the first to recognize when the moral direction of the country is drifting. History shows us that progress often begins when students refuse to accept injustice as inevitable.

Today, that lesson is urgent. We are living through a period of rising authoritarianism—where dissent is discouraged, protest is criminalized, and institutions are pressured to enforce compliance rather than conscience. Authoritarianism thrives when people are isolated, fearful, and disengaged. What the students of CCSD demonstrated is the opposite: solidarity, courage, and participation. That is how authoritarianism is defeated—not someday, but now.

For the NAACP, youth leadership is crucial; it is essential. Our organization is strengthened by young people and has survived for over a century because each generation stepped forward to carry the work of protecting and advancing civil rights. The courage we saw this week is exactly the kind of leadership that sustains movements and keeps institutions accountable to their mission.

These student leaders gave us more than a demonstration—they issued a challenge. As adults, educators, parents, and community leaders, we must meet their clarity with action. Democracy does not defend itself. It is defended when we stand with our young people, learn from them, and move forward. Together

In love & solidarity,

QM