During the heat of the 2016 presidential election, our country’s atmosphere was toxic. It was at that exact moment that Hurricane Harvey hit my community. Streets were turned into canals and homes were flooded. Political strides ceased to matter. It was neighbor helping neighbor, American, helping American.
I created Day of Unity to combat political polarization and promote person before politics beliefs. We put together conferences and conventions for high school students to overcome this issue and see each other as fellow Americans. In the same story, Day of Unity had lectures, breakout sessions, and interactive workshops. The students at our convention were having more productive, healthier conversations than those going on in Washington.
The momentum behind Day of Unity and widespread youth support for our mission attracted high-profile speakers on the right and the left. Senator Ted Cruz, Congressman Joaquin Castro, the chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, the Chairman of the Democratic Party of Texas, and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.
I’m particularly proud that Day of Unity is working with the Texas State Board of Education to scale our ideas to every public high school in Texas.
It doesn’t matter what age you are, what matters is your drive and will to make a difference. When I began my activism, I wasn’t even old enough to vote, but I worked to make a change. I’m proud to join the Diller community, the community of young people who are changemakers.