Before February 14, 2018 the only people who knew Emma Gonzalez were those of her immediate circle, her friends, her family, her teachers. The horrific mass shooting at her high school, Marjorie Stoneman Douglas, launched her into the spotlight. She, along with several of her classmates refused to back down, they demanded to be heard. They lead the charge to change the laws so that what happened to them will never happen again.

Emma stepped fully into the spotlight when she called BS on all the proposed half measures, a speech that she had no idea would be nationally televised. Since that moment, she has not ceased to speak. This past March 24th, she once again grabbed the attention of the nation and likely the world when at the “March for OUr Lives” with the Capital Building just a few blocks behind her, she named the victims and what they would “never” before falling silent. She held that silence with a steadfast gaze despite her noiseless tears. Through this silence, the audience grew restless at times and once broke into a chant of “Never again!” Emma held that silence until a timer sounded, a timer indicating six minutes and twenty seconds, the amount of time it took for the gunman to enter, take 17 lives and exit, blending into the fleeing crowd before being apprehended over an hour later. That silence sent chills down my spine. This girl, barely 18, still in high school, has found her voice and shows no sign of letting go.

Shortly after watching the video of Emma, I found a clip showing the speech of a local 11-year-old girl, an African-American girl who led a walkout at her elementary school on March 14th in solidarity not only with the Parkland victims but also with the African-American female victims of gun violence whose stories have not been told. She calmly and capably refuted those who say that she and the other students have no voice of their own; they’re simply pawns of adults with an agenda. In that strong, confident girl, I saw my students who are only a year or two older than her. So many of these children speak out against the injustice that they see and they speak better than the adults around them who quickly discount these children simply because of their age.

Before this year, before Youth in Government and Model UN, I must acknowledge that I too would have had to count myself among the skeptics. Thankfully, I am no longer amongst that number. Over and over I have seen how with guidance from adults who believe in them, these students find their voice. They find a voice to express what they believe in the face of fierce opposition. They learn how to listen to the opposition and how to respond with more grace than most people two or three times their age could ever be capable of.

Instead of doubting the veracity of these students’ beliefs, I choose to come alongside them. Instead of casting doubt, I open my door wide for any who see help. The ideas come from them. These ideas take shape and blossom with assistance and guidance, like the apple trees, pruned so that the branches may bear more fruit. I will gladly prune the trees, unnoticed in the winter so that come summer, the branches bear abundant fruit.