Campaign for Nonviolent Schools Flash Mob a Success

On, Tuesday April 20th around 2pm, Philadelphia Student Union conducted a 3-minute action. In only 180 seconds, we showed the power and leadership that young people have when we are organized for non-violence.

With about 100 students, we walked into Rittenhouse Square from all entrances and socialized with surrounding friends. Then......Boom! Shania Morris, a 8th grader from Huey, gave the signal and everyone came together in single filed lines. Then with a great fist raised in the air, we took of our hoodies and jackets to reveal our shirts. On the front it said, "We are not a Flash Mob" and on the back said, "We are" and different words like leaders, organziers, artists, thinkers, etc.  I myself had  "We are Innovators" on the back of mine, because I thought it fit the type of person I was.

Then, still standing in our single file lines, we took a pledge to reject violence in all of its forms, identify the root causes of violence, and stand up against injustice. As we said these words together, I could hear our voice echoing across the park. At the end we all dispersed in different directions and it was amazing to see people just in awe.

The event was to show the media and the public that we are the young people of the city and that ALL youth are leaders. We are your everyday people, and we cannot be labeled as violent.

After the event I believe we did an awesome job because I saw that people sitting on benches, walking, even new people entering the park, were all fixated on us. And that was what we wanted, we wanted to grab the attention of the public. We showed that we weren't just a group of youth, but a disciplined, organized, powerful group of youth coming out to stand up against violence being committed towards us.

We also wanted to talk about our Campaign for Nonviolent Schools and I believe we did a excellent job doing that task. We had about 100 people yelling to the top of their lungs with passion, when they said out loud the pledge. We also had students talking to the media saying that we were sanding up against the criminalizing of youth, underfunded schools, as well as education that builds us to be test-takers and not critical thinkers. I think all in all it was an awesome event and we definately got our message across.

-DeVante Wilson, Carver HS Senior

PS- Check out some of the other press coverage that we got:

City students campaign against school violence

A 'flash' of peaceful inspiration

Phila. Students Show the ''Flash" Without the ''Mob'' in Rittenhouse Square

photo by Milena Velis, MMP