Apirka

"I want to be a voice for the voiceless."

By Students of NYC

March 25^th, 2024

"I travel over an hour to get to school each day, but it’s worth it to me. Here at MCHS, we get to take college courses at LaGuardia College down the block. We go there and attend lectures next to the college students and everything. Some of them are 30, 40 years old. I’ve been taking college courses since 9th grade; I'm doing the four years associates. At the end of this semester, I'll have 45 credits.

This year, I organized a Valentine's dance for our school with the other house reps. Who doesn’t like a dance? Plus, it’s valentine's day– the cutest theme ever. It took a lot of planning. We needed permission slips, we needed to get chaperones before we even gave out the permission slips. We needed decorations. Who's doing music? Are we going to get food? And then – are people going to come? So I made flyers and we posted them around school. We posted them on Instagram. Funny story... People were acting like they didn't want to go. And then we're like, 'Hey guys, we need at least 50 people or we're going to cancel.' All of a sudden everyone's like, I got my permission slip! I got my money! On the night of the dance, we had so much fun. Our school has a very big Hispanic, Latino population. A lot of salsa, bachata, all of that.

I find my mom’s story so inspiring. She’s an immigrant from Haiti. She’s come from very humble beginnings, but has been able to work her way up the ladder. To have a career, buy a house, raise a child. I remember going on vacation and she would take these big thick books for her when she was studying at the police academy. I’d be in the pool and she’d be on the chair reading with her highlighter in her hand. I’m not sure she remembers telling me this, but when she graduated from the academy, her mom said to her, 'Wow, America has really changed. Because you– a black woman, an immigrant, someone who had almost nothing– became a police officer.' Now, she's a sergeant for the NYPD.

I want to be an immigration lawyer or a family court judge. I want to be a voice for the voiceless. As a human, you can be right, but according to the law, you can’t be helped. There are so many people who are seeking refuge or asylum, but the laws set in place make it difficult for them and they’re helpless in a situation. Imagine coming from a different country, doing whatever you had to do to leave because you’re in danger. Not just to leave, but to have to get somewhere else that’s safe. Then being denied a life because of laws that are in place. Or if you're in a domestic situation, someone's hurting you or doing something, and you can't help yourself. I’ve always wanted to be part of something that’s bigger than me. I think in all of my activities — my work with the school’s green team for climate change, my role as a house representative, my involvement in my church— what keeps me motivated is being able to be part of something that’s bigger. Because it's our world. We are the ones who have to live in it. Our children are the ones who are going to face the consequences.

I know that I go to a school every day where people are happy to see me, where they're just rooting for me. From freshman year of Apirka to today– the growth is actually crazy. I remember coming in my first day of freshman year and being so scared to take up space. So scared to talk. Even calling teachers by their first name, I'd hesitate. I still hesitate -- the Caribbean in me just won't let me do it. But I've gotten so much support from everyone and they've really instilled in me, even if I haven't fully grasped it– to believe it myself. And that feels so good."