Words by Smiley Team
Nigerian-born activist, intersectional feminist and community leader Marvina Eseoghene Newton is a formidable force for good in the activist community. She is a co-founder of Black Lives Matter (BLM) Leeds, a movement mentor for United for Black Lives, and mental health ethnic inequalities lead for children and young people.
Among the many projects she leads, Angel of Youths is one of her latest endeavours. The up-and-coming charity supports young people from disadvantaged or marginalised backgrounds to tackle the inequality they face.
Passing on knowledge to the next generation, the organisation empowers them to drive change themselves. It offers them the opportunity to create projects built around the three pillars of love, hate, create, enabling them to use what they love doing most as a tool to improve society.
Marvina is adamant that it should be as accessible as possible for youths whose voices would otherwise not be heard. “I don't care about what you study. What you study doesn’t matter so much as what you love. It could be art, music or fashion, anything,” she asserted.
“So I say to young people, ‘Tell me what you hate,’ and I know people will be surprised at this. But I mean what do people hate in society. For example, I hate the fact that climate conversations are not happening. I hate that we are not looking at consumption, I hate racism.
“You have to say these things, or else nothing changes. If you did not hate the racial inequalities, there would not be a civil rights movement. So, let's get accustomed to using the word hate in a positive way.”
After identifying what they love and hate in society, the young people are guided so that they can channel this into whatever projects they come up with.
“So if they love fashion but they hate the over consumption of clothes in capitalist society then they might organise an upcycled fashion show, or design a sustainable clothes swap system,” she explained. “They could do body positivity work to tackle US-centric beauty standards and spotlight how everyone is beautiful with diverse models. And that's the fun thing about building projects built around what people love.”
Raising the voices of Black youths
One of the charity’s latest successes is a film produced by young volunteers from Angel of Youths in collaboration with Youth Watch Leeds and BLM Leeds.
The film, ‘Being Black and Being Me’, aims to reduce stigma around mental illnesses, demonstrating how necessary it is for Black children and young people to express how they’re feeling mentally, and to normalise talking about our mental health as a community. It does this by shining a light on the shared experiences of and challenges faced by young Black people.
Reflecting on her work for Angel of Youths, Marvina said: “I love working with young people. Children and young people are my joy. I feel they need a lot of support though, because they've got so much passion and energy but their future is pending.
“I also think we don't value their voice and influence enough. So I want to put intergenerational work into all activism, where young people have the same stake, respect and equal value in shaping the future.”
Find more information and learn how you can support Angel of Youths here.
