What is SumOurRoots?
SumOurRoots (SOR) is a 6-week long paid social justice internship where SouthEast Asian high school students can learn more about their identities, communities, and how to make change happen to create a better world for ourselves and future generations. To do so, students analyze the histories and struggles from their own culture and other communities of color in order to understand the present. Throughout the summer, students also learn life skills like cooking, gardening, and telling stories about ourselves to connect with our ancestors and to build relationships with our peers and staff.
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What is the purpose?
The purpose of SOR is to provide students the knowledge and resources to discover more about their communities and culture and to inform students of the current issues that are impacting each student individually or as a whole. SOR also creates a safe space for students to share stories of their life and express struggles that we as SouthEast Asians have faced throughout our lifetime.
SOR’s Structure
For the first 2 weeks of SOR, students engage in workshops that involve community building and learning about different movements and events that took place to develop skills on how to organize and create solutions for these issues. During those 2 weeks, we also dig deeper into social and economic injustices that we see in our everyday lives. After completing the first 2 weeks, students are split up into groups to participate in 3 different rotations: gardening, storytelling, and cooking. Each group spends 1 week in their designated rotations while learning how these activities help us better understand our cultural traditions and ancestors from SouthEast Asia. The last week of SOR is spent preparing for the final event we hold at the end of the program
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How do I Apply?
Applications for SOR are released around the beginning of April and are due near the end of April. Applications are available on the Vietlead website and social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook.
Cooking Rotation
In cooking rotations, students are given ingredients and instructions on how to cook a cultural dish at home. Staff and leads are on call to guide students through the process. Throughout our time cooking, students learn about different ethnic dishes and relate it back to the similar labor our ancestors have done while we bond with our team and staff. Before they get their hands on cooking, they learn how to take proper safety precautions and the correct way to stay clean when in the kitchen.
In gardening rotation, staff and students get a chance to go to the garden at Furness High School and learn about the various SouthEast Asian plants there. During their time there, the students are introduced to the various plants that are native in SouthEast Asia and are given fun facts about each one. Once the plants are ready to be harvested, students are taught how to properly harvest the plants that are best for the plants. During their time online, students learn how to identify the different plants and tools.
In storytelling, students have scheduled interviews with community members, staff, and family members for a chance to hear personal stories and opinions on issues that are impacting the community and the students participating in SOR. The interviewers are trained students who have prepared the questions and confidence required for the interviewees to feel comfortable and welcomed in the space. When students are not interviewing, they are organizing information they’ve gathered from the interviews and share out personal experiences to practice telling stories to one another as a way to carry on tales and narratives that were told through our elders.