Join our co-op as we set up a table at this event to discuss our community activism efforts.

Zyahna Bryant and other special guests for an afternoon of conversation and activities centering the history and future of student activism in Virginia and beyond. Zyahna will be discussing her book “Reclaim.” and her work in Charlottesville petitioning to take down the Robert E. Lee statue in 2016. She will also be hosting a workshop on civic engagement for youth in middle and high school. The event is a drop-in format (come when you'd like, and stay as long as you'd like), free and open to the public. No pre-registration is required. Guests will be encouraged to visit the VMHC's exhibition, "Determined: The 400-Year Struggle for Black Equality," on display through March 29 and in which, Zyahna is featured. Tentative Schedule: 2:00-2:30 Welcome and Introduction by Karen Sherry, curator of "Determined: The 400-Year Struggle for Black Equality" 3:00 - 3:45 Talk and Q&A by Zyahna Bryant 4:00-4:45 Panel Conversation and Q&A About Zyahna Bryant: Zyahna Bryant (University of Virginia) is an award-winning student activist, community organizer, and author who published her first book, a collection of poetry and essays titled, “Reclaim.” in January of 2019. Zyahna founded the Charlottesville High School Black Student Union at the age of 14. In the spring of 2016, Zyahna wrote the petition calling for the removal of Confederate statues from Charlottesville’s parks, and City Council voted to remove them in 2017. Zyahna was recently appointed as the youngest member of Virginia’s African American Advisory Board. She will work to advise Governor Northam on issues that impact African Americans across the commonwealth. Zyahna also serves as the youngest member President’s Council for UVA-Community Partnership where she hopes to amplify the work of student leaders and grassroots organizers who are actively working to bridge the gap between the Charlottesville community and the University. She was recently named as a member of Teen Vogue’s 21 under 21 class of 2019. Zyahna has been featured in The New York Times, National Geographic, The New Yorker Magazine, Forbes; and featured on Vice News, PBS, CNN, and BET. In 2018, she was awarded the Princeton Prize in Race Relations and the Bassett Award for Community Engagement from Yale University. Zyahna has served as a Student School Board Representative for the Charlottesville City Schools division and is a passionate advocate for educational equity.