Activist Talks Youth Engagement in Education

Fifty-seven million children around the world do not go to school, but youth advocacy can play an important role in reversing this trend, according to Chernor Bah, youth representative to the United Nations High Level Steering Committee.

Bah, who is also chair of the Youth Advocacy Group for the Global Education First Initiative, spoke to a small group of students Monday night in an event sponsored by the Leadership Institute at Harvard College. He emphasized that education is a “simple human right,” but lamented statistics such as the 96 percent of children with disabilities in Africa who do not receive an education.

“That’s a crisis,” Bah said. “It should call our attention.”

Bah said that youth have much potential to accomplish global change and lead movements for education. He expressed deep respect for Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani education activist whom Bah called an icon in the global education movement. Malala recently received the Harvard Humanitarian of the Year award.

“I think her story reminds us of what we are capable of doing,” he said, referencing Malala’s recovery and continued activism on behalf of universal education despite being targeted by the Taliban for her work

“When Malala was shot, it could have easily become a story about the Taliban and terrorism,” Bah said. Yet, her persistence ultimately created the “perfect opportunity not to make this about terrorism, but about what she really stood for--children’s education,” he said.

Bah suggested that online platforms could support the global education movement. As an example, he referenced the efforts made on social media to highlight Malala’s cause after she was shot by the Taliban, such as the promotion of her blog posts on education and the trending of her name on Twitter.

“Sometimes we think impressions online don’t matter, but they do. We try to organize people,” he said.

Born during civil war in Sierra Leone, Bah said he would not be where he is today if he had not received an education. “The way out of poverty, hopelessness, is education,” he said. “[Education] gives hope.”

He added that his life-long goal to “give young people a voice” emerged from the chaos of the war. “That’s defined my life,” he said. “It’s always about looking for an opportunity to bring people who will be affected into the policy process.”

Youth must spread awareness because governments often need to be pushed to prioritize education when its immediate economic impact is not clear, according to Bah.

“I thought it was really interesting, and it emphasized the pressure that we as students can impart on powerful countries to make the changes that we want to see happen,” said YingYing Shang ’17 of the talk.