8th Annual Social Justice Alliance Symposium Uplifts Through Joyous Conversations

"History teaches us that transformative change has always been led by young people," said Bowie State University President Aminta H. Breaux at the eighth annual Social Justice Alliance (SJA) Symposium.

On April 10, several hundred students, faculty and staff from Bowie State and the University of Maryland (UMD) gathered at UMD's Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center to remember the life of a BSU student cut short and to look forward to a more just future.

The SJA was founded to honor the life and legacy of BSU student 2nd Lieutenant Richard W. Collins III, whose life was taken at a College Park bus stop by a UMD student in 2017. He was posthumously promoted to the rank of first lieutenant by the U.S. Army. This year's theme, "Freedom Dreams and Radical Joy: Youth Voices in the Pursuit of a Just Society," honors Lt. Collins by seeking to expand conversations about social justice on UMD and BSU campuses.  

"It will take the voices, the courage and the conviction of our students to advance that justice, to protect democracy and to pursue radical joy, not as an abstract ideal, but as a lived reality," said President Breaux.

Dawn and Richard Collins, Lt. Collins' parents, and UMD President Darryll Pines also addressed the gathering. The symposium featured conversations and performances, including a panel discussion with CNN anchor Abby Phillips and BSU student Giovanni Porrata. Phillips asked Porrata, a member of Army ROTC, how Collins' legacy affects him as he pursues his career and education and what justice looks like to him.

"Lt. Collins' story hits so close to home, and it hits me every single time I go inside the Martin Luther King Center at Bowie State," said the graduate student. "Visitors are greeted with a two-story mural of him in that building. And when I go into the military department, I'm welcomed by plaques, awards, and Collins family photos, so it's a constant reminder. It's a reminder to myself, to my family and all of us that we all have the same purpose, and we're all striving for the same things that he stood for."

Dr. Matasha Harris, associate dean of Bowie State's College of Professional Studies, attended as the co-lead for the BSU-UMD Social Justice Alliance. She is also Co-Executive Director at the university's Institute for Restorative Justice and Practices.

"Radical joy is resistance. We cannot honor Lt. Collins through remembrance alone. Justice demands disrupting systems and refusing to remain comfortable in the face of inequity."

SJA board member Beth Douthirt-Cohen, a faculty member at UMD, also commented on how meaningful young voices are to the conversation on social justice. 

"It was so powerful to hear how youth leadership can offer new ways to resist hatred and offer us ways to better love ourselves and each other."