“We are the future. In five, ten, twenty years we will be the lawmakers, the voting block, the leaders in our communities – why not make our voices heard today, so that we have the confidence to become those things in the future.”

That’s what Madeleine McLean hopes to instill in Boise High students after presenting at the summit on March 21st.

Her group, People for Unity, is one of many groups presenting at the summit. They are a student-led, student-run political activism group that organized several remarkable marches in Boise, including the first-ever Women’s March in Idaho that attracted more than 5,000 people.

People for Unity has been a leading voice in the fight against current government decisions. After the Women’s March, they also organized a student-led Public Education Rally and Student Walkout, which attracted hundreds of high school students across the Treasure Valley. Additionally, they have plans in the making to host an upcoming student walkout on March 14th to protest Congress’s lack of legislation on gun control.

McLean and the other 4 members of People for Unity–Fiona Harpole, Sadie Pierce-Heartman, Will Tanguy and Colette Raptosh–all hope that students walk away from their workshop feeling like their voices make a difference.

“Our hope is that students realize just how powerful their voices are…We hope that by the end of our workshop, the belief that our voices will not be heard will be diminished, and that the Boise High Community will have learned the influence and importance of their voices,” adds Madeleine.