![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
Amnesty Club wrote letters to governments and government-silenced individuals around the world to promote social justice in their first club meeting on Oct. 10.
They chose to support a list of 13 artists in prison for their work in protesting against oppressessions in their countries and organizations aiming to eliminate book banning. The meeting honored National Banned Books Week from Sept. 22-28, which focused not only on books but a variety of multimedia work like music, poetry and journalism.
Some individuals that members wrote to included graffiti artist from Argentina Pierina Nochetti and Uyghur university student Kamile Wayt to urge their release. Incarcerated for four years, Nochetti painted a piece in defense of a trans man who mysteriously disappeared, and Wayt posted pictures of a protest honoring those who suffered from the Urumqi Fire.
Founders Avery Jones (12) and Valerie Li (12), along with officers Kyra Cui (12) and Aanya Mukherjee (10), introduced the club mission to defend and protect all individuals who experience personal rights violations.
“Amnesty has national campaigns, so we want to amplify the campaigns that they’re holding,” Valerie said. “Censorship is a really detrimental issue in many countries, so I think it’s important that we work to fight against it, even if we’re in the United States. We can still have an impact globally if we talk about it.”
Avery and Valerie highlighted key events the club will host throughout the year, including fundraising activities and celebrating National Week of Student Action. They welcomed recommendations from members about human rights topics that the club could explore in future meetings.
New member Amber Wang (9), who believes that censorship is a prominent human rights issue, joined the club to help combat social injustices.
“It was interesting how quickly we got to do something concrete and not just talk for the entire time about what [book banning] is,” Amber said. “You read all these stories about human rights abuses in the news. Since I read the news a lot, I was really concerned, and I was interested in finding a way that I could help.”
The club is part of the global nonprofit Amnesty International, the largest grassroots organization in the world. They advocate for human rights universally by engaging in activities on a local level to inspire change globally.
Returning member Cam Jones (10) observed the increased number of students participating compared to last year and hopes that the increased engagement levels will help spread an interest in upholding the club values.
“This year, the energy in the club was a lot different and better,” Cam said. “There are a lot of people chatting and having fun. That was a great way to combine serious issues with a fun club meeting.”
