When thinking of an activist I would have to say my youngest sister Madalyn is the perfect example of a young activist. My youngest sister Madalyn is eleven years old and a great example to other girls her age and to me as well. Madalyn has always been years ahead of her age. I think this is because she is the youngest out of four girls, so she has always been eager to keep up with her older sisters. Madalyn is just finishing up sixth grade and throughout this semester she has made an effort to create a positivity page on her Facebook profile for kids in her classes to follow. Madalyn writes a positive Facebook post every day that encourage kids in her classes to think positively about themselves and others.
Madalyn decided to make her Facebook page into a positivity page when she started her first day of sixth grade. I talked to Madalyn on her first day of school and she explained to me that everyone was really nervous to make the transition from elementary school to an intermediate school. Madalyn felt that with all the changes that everyone was going through people were starting to develop negative attitudes towards themselves and others. There were many girls in Madalyn's classes that were constantly comparing themselves to other girls and bashing on their own bodies as well as other girls bodies. Not only were they bashing on their body image but these young girls who were now thrown into a junior high type setting were trying to figure out what "group" they belonged in, so some of the girls were starting to get mean on a personal level. With all the changes that everyone was going through Madalyn decided that it might be a good idea to get positive conversations going on her Facebook page, so she could create a positive space for kids in her classes to communicate with each other.
Madalyn has received great support from her classmates and as a result has even made new friends and helped others to do the same. Her posts range in a variety of topics but all of them lead to positive conversations. Here are a few examples of some of her posts- "I am loving my hair today, comment below and tell me what you love about yourself today!!!!!!", "I am stressed with all of this homework!! is anyone else stressed??? Lets help each other out!!", "Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do something, because you definitely can!", "Spongebob is my favorite!!!!! What is your favorite Spongebob episode???", "I am so grateful for my family today, what are you grateful for?" "The mile run for PE was canceled today because of the rain!!!! YAY!!! What awesome thing happened to you today????"
I am really proud of my sister for what she is doing. Obviously these posts are a little silly but to a bunch of eleven year olds who are struggling to figure out a new school, I think it is helpful for them to talk about their favorite Spongebob episode or the awesome thing that happened to them that day to get their mind off of things. I think often times it is the little things that make the biggest difference. What Madalyn is doing may be small but I think even a positive conversation can really help someone who is struggling. My sister Madalyn is great example to me of how to make a positive difference in other peoples lives. I think it is great that my sister is finding small ways to help others, today its through Facebook, but who knows maybe tomorrow she could be the next Tavi Gevinson!
This is so cute and awesome. What a neat little sister you have! I do think it is important to focus on positive things and to especially make those part of the Internet culture. Sometimes social networking can be so depressing because of negativity. I'm glad to see your little sister is doing good!
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