We Are What They Envisioned
We Are What They Envisioned: Expressions of Resistance, Resilience, and Re-imagination was written by the 2016-2017 9th grade Ethnic Studies students at Roosevelt High School
Roxana Dueñas, Eduardo López, and Jorge López are three groundbreaking teachers who created the Ethnic Studies course “Boyle Heights and Me” for ninth grade students at Roosevelt High School. Using the themes of resistance, resilience, and re-imagination, students analyze the root causes of oppression while taking a closer look at their own identities and their Boyle Heights community.
We Are What They Envisioned explores how students must navigate and carry the histories of their ancestors as they walk towards their own futures. Inspired by Octavia Butler, Tupac Shakur, Kendrick Lamar’s song DNA, and the concept of becoming their ancestors’ wildest dreams, this collection of student writing reveals reflections on the past of colonization, the present of their current family struggles and success, and the future of their own legacies for the next seven generations.