4 JUNE 11, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
‘Kids Peace Movement’ gives Ridgewood’s
youth a platform to discuss Black Lives Matter
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
AACEVEDO@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
The “Kids Peace Movement,” organized
by mothers Kristina Cubero
and Rachel Vargas, was created to
acknowledge children’s need to “understand,
be heard and recognized,” as the
Black Lives Matter movement for racial
justice carries on locally and globally.
The event took place on Sunday, June 7,
at Grover Cleveland Park in Ridgewood,
and was hosted by celebrity hairstylist
Stacy Gray.
Various speakers, most of whom
are based in Brooklyn, addressed the
dozens of children, parents and community
members — who gathered at the
park with masks and signs of solidarity
— about the importance of understanding
the movement and building unity
within the community.
“Black Lives Matter foundation is a
global organization whose mission is to
eradicate white supremacy and build local
power to intervene violence infl icted
on Black communities by combatting
and countering acts of violence and by
creating spaces for Black imagination,
innovation and centering Black joy,”
said Triniti Slaughter, a rising junior
at Cornell University.
Some of the day’s speakers included
creator Yani Richards, artists Alex
Tyree and Cavier Coleman, as well as
author of “Once a Cop” and retired
NYPD commanding officer of 67th
Precinct in Brooklyn Corey Pegues.
Two kids also spoke, including Gray’s
9-year-old son, Emmanuel Gray.
Emmanuel read an essay about the
confusion he’s experienced by seeing
innocent men like George Floyd and
12-year-old Tamir Rice killed by police
offi cers.
“Statistics state that one in 1,000 young
Black males have died at the hands of
the police. This is scary to me because
I’ve always looked up to the police as
protectors and role models in our community.
But as I’m getting older and
older, it’s becoming more confusing
to me when I hear the stories of Black
males being harassed and killed … just
because our skin color appears to be a
threat,” Emmanuel said.
“When we have leaders that act like
kids, us kids have to have the ability to
become the new leaders,” he added, ending
his speech by giving some ways we
can end racial profi ling, like “getting to
know people from other races.”
Cubero, with a background in event
production who grew up in Ridgewood,
said the event came together in about
fi ve days. She was surprised how much
help and donations she received from
the community — like speakers, 1,500
cookies, water bottles and bubbles.
“We actually came up with the Kids
The Kids Peace Movement participants marched toward Maria Hernandez Park. Photos by Angélica Acevedo
Peace Movement, here in the park,”
Cubero, of Ecuadorian descent, said. “I
just felt called to do it for my 10-year-old
daughter, and felt called to do it for the
community.”
Vargas, whose daughter is best
friends with Cubero’s daughter, thought
it was important to create an environment
where they could educate themselves
and fellow parents who may be
struggling to explain what’s going on.
“We sat down together just having a
very powerful conversation about racism
and the injustices that we saw growing
up in Bushwick and Ridgewood, and
just sharing how our upbringing maybe
had conditioned us somehow,” Vargas,
who is of Dominican descent, said.
“We understood that we had to be
better,” she said. “And as our girls are
playing on the playground we said,
‘We need to teach them so much better,’
because they’re the future, and they’re
the ones that are really going to keep
the momentum going. We wanted something
where the kids could express
themselves and really come together,
and see that they had power and weren’t
powerless, because there was a lot of
confusion and fear.”
Vargas added that they created resources
for parents to use during this
time.
Bed-Stuy resident Alejandro Jhonson
attended the event with his wife, Natalia,
and his energetic three-year-old
son, James. He said his wife was made
aware of the event through Whatsapp
messages and social media.
“I’m 50 years old, so I’ve been through
all of these things, but it’s good to have
James exposed … it was good for him
to get some fresh air and be around
this,” Jhonson said. “He has older siblings,
but they’re out doing the regular
marching.”
After some downtime and a performance
by local musician, Letta J,
the attendees marched toward Maria
Hernandez Park in Bushwick, escorted
by the 104th Precinct.
Chants of “Black Lives Matter,” “Who
are we? We are the future!” and “George
Floyd / Breonna Taylor / Rest in Peace
/ Rest in Power” were accompanied by
beats from a local musician.
As they marched down Woodward
Avenue and Troutman Street, bystanders
cheered them on by popping their
heads out of their apartment windows,
ringing bells and banging on pots
(cacerolazos) and cars honking in
solidarity.
Once they reached Maria Hernandez
Park, participants gathered around in a
circle for a moment of silence for Floyd
and countless other police brutality
victims, followed by a chorus of some
of the victims’ names.
Some more community members
spoke about educating the youth and
dismantling the system that has let
racism persist, not only in the criminal
system but other aspects of life in the
United States like education.
By 3:30 p.m., the event ended.
Heidi Peña, a 24-year-old educator
with a sign that read “Las Vidas Negras
Importan” (spanish translation of
“Black Lives Matter”), came all the way
from Ozone Park to be a part of the Kids
Peace Movement.
“We all have to show up and show out
because inequality toward Black communities
has gone on for far too long,
and we as a nation can’t move forward
without restoratively addressing the
issues,” Peña said.
Acting Queens Borough President
Sharon Lee visited the event for a few
minutes at Grover Cleveland Park.
“The smallest voices are oft en the
loudest,” she told QNS. “This Kid’s
Protest was clearly organized with
love to build a future that is antiracist,
more just and more equitable
than today, deeply committed to a
new normal.”
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