SOCIAL MEDIA COMPETITION TO END SOCIAL INJUSTICE

“ACTIVE VOICES”

Please send your entry via email to these below:

1. Secretary of the Orange County Chapter: Crystal Martinez, secretary@una-oc.org

2. President of the Chicago Chapter: Magdalena Zlatkova, MZlatkova@unachicago.org.

3. Socialmediacontest@unachicago.org

On February 1960, four young African American students from North Carolina walked into Woolworth’s in Greensboro and staged a sit-in at its “whites only” lunch counter. Every day for six months these students returned to the lunch counter and over time, their numbers grew. The Greensboro sit-in soon inspired similar nonviolent protest across the south and eventually forced Woolworth’s and other establishments to change their segregationist policies. Evidently, there is no age limit for social change.

There are many ways young people can participate in combating racism and injustice. We believe young people can educate one another, run for student office, advocate for legislation, engage in community service, launch a public awareness campaign that includes social media, etc. The possibilities are endless! The future lies within the hands of our youth.

Raise your voice and be creative! 

Create a social media artifact that tells the truth about social injustice and racism. 

RULES:

• For our purposes, a “Social Media Artifact” may include an original image, infographic, meme, GIF, short video, post with links to websites, YouTube, Tik Tok, etc. and should be aimed at a specific audience with the goal of abolishing injustice and racism. The idea is to prevent violence and be creative when raising our voices and concerns.

• All SM Artifacts must be original. Using quotes, facts, original footage, data, etc.

• All sources must be properly cited, and you must create a new, original design or way of presenting the information.  Re-posting or simply copying an image does not count. 

• A copy of the Social Media Artifact must  be sent to: President@una-oc.org, MZlatkova@unachicago.org, socialmediacontest@unachicago.org.

• Must be posted on a social media platform (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, Tiktok, etc)

• Must use hashtags in post:  #USAforUN #BLM #blacklivesmatter #UN #unitednations

• Tag us @unaocc, @unachicago, @unasouthernca 

  
  

JUDGING CRITERIA:

1. Potential impact on vulnerable or influential audiences.

2. Creativity, Appeal, and Style.

3. Authenticity and accurate portrayal of the issue as we know it. 

CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:

1. Identify a specific audience that the post is aimed at influencing.

2. Determine the outcome you desire – a chain of acts, go viral, policy change…

3. Decide how the SM artifact can lead to further action (ie. call a hotline, research, buy fair trade, etc) 

4. Any photographs of people must be used with proper permission, as well as respect and consideration of the identity of the person represented, in light of the sensitive topic. (E.g. an image of a person should not be used without their permission or represented in a negative, dis-empowered way, stock photos must be paid for, and original photos must have the written consent of the model). Please use a waiver if you need any consent.

Regional competition sponsored by the United Nations Association of Orange County and United Nations Association of Chicago.

Judges:

Farah Eck Senior Director of the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA), and within this role she oversees UNA-USA’s national programs, chapter support, communications strategy, and member engagement. Farah brings with her 7+ years of experience as a UNA-USA volunteer, serving as a Chapter President (UNA Chicago) and Board Member, and as UNA-USA National Council Member for the Great Lakes Region!

Farah’s background is in fundraising, organizational capacity building, communications, and stakeholder engagement. Prior to her current position at the UN Foundation, Farah oversaw the global Membership Division for Lions Clubs International (LCI), the world’s largest organization dedicated to improving communities through volunteer service. Before LCI, Farah served as the Alumni and Volunteer Relations Director of the Young African Leadership Initiative Regional Leadership Center East Africa in Nairobi, Kenya.

Farah is a global citizen who was born of a Pakistani father, American mother, and has lived and worked in 32 countries. Farah has coauthored a children’s cookbook and nutritional guide, Freddy, Fork it Over!, and is currently penning a children’s storybook based upon oral Kenyan folklore. She has a BA in advertising from Bradley University, a MA in communications and graduate certificate in nonprofit management from the University of Illinois at Springfield, and a MA in international relations and conflict resolution from American Public University.

Crystal Martinez is a global citizen and an innovative thinker passionate about facilitating communities to be better served by government, institutions, and policies. She aspires to work globally for the United Nations. Crystal is a human rights champion and advocate. She serves as a board member of the Fullerton Human Trafficking Partnership. Crystal Martinez is a former UNA-USA Campus Chapter President at CSUF where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with an International Politics minor. Some of her hobbies are practicing yoga, volunteering at local homeless shelters, hiking, and going to the beach. 

Isabel Treidl a former President of the United Nations Association – Orange County (UNA-OC), current Southern California representative of the National Council, and a current VP of Communication at UNA Southern California. Before she used to lead Young Professionals at both UNA-OC and at Southern California Division. She also was a chair of Education at UNA-OC.

Isabel Treidl is the Associate Professor, Instructor at Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Coach of Creativity and Innovation.

As a National Council member and President of UNA-OC, Isabel was a speaker at the side event of the 43rd session Human Right Council. Voices and recommendations from American Society. A conversation ahead of the 3rd U.S Universal Periodic Review addressing Human Trafficking in Southern California.

Isabel has a Bachelor’s degree in Product Design Engineering and a Master’s in Business Administration.  Certified in Marketing at the University of California Berkeley.

Since she was young, Isabel has been motivated by social issues and has worked to improve the quality of people’s lives. During college, she participated in several conferences, seminars and national publications that spearheaded the development of cheaper prosthetics to replace the knee. She worked with the Colombian Army to help veterans who had lost their limbs due to land mines. She won local and national awards for biomedical research and entrepreneurship. In 2008 she received a scholarship from the Inter-American Development Bank National Young Entrepreneurs Award for a cultural mission to China in order to enhance her entrepreneurial skills. In 2009 she started working as a consultant and developed projects for the Colombian Government and private companies, and became a member of In-Nove, a Latin American consulting firm.  In 2019 she received a grant to conduct research in Israel regarding creativity across cultures.

Diana Hyrya promotes technology for social impact. She believes that no one is too small to make a difference, and believe it or not, we chose the road for ourselves and influencing the lives of others. She holds both MBA for international business administration and MS in information processing /computational linguistics. Her passion is useful information.

Diana has earned the “Volunteer of the Year” Award from our chapter and a congressional letter, and recognition by UNA-SoCal. Her favorite SDG is #8 Decent Work and Economic Growth. She believes that new technologies improve communication, increase productivity, create new and better jobs, and are the answer for accelerating efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Diana is a former Counselor of YMCA, a Social Worker of the International Red Cross, and a participant in Culture Exchange programs.

London J. Bell is a native Detroiter, a lawyer, community organizer, activist, and humanitarian with specific educational training in international human rights law and policy and international business and trade law. London has focused her career advocating for policy changes on behalf of diverse communities. She is the Founder and President of Bell Global Justice Institute, a non- governmental organization (NGO) based in Detroit focused on advancing and promoting the human rights of women and girls. London is a member of the United Nations Association of the United States (UNA-USA) and serves as a 2018-2020 UNA-USA National Council Member (Great Lakes Region). In addition, London serves as the 2018-2020 National Chair for UNA Women, an affinity group for UNA- USA. London has served as a UNA-USA NGO Delegate for the 62 nd and 63 rd Sessions of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in New York in 2018 and 2019. In 2019, London was selected for and proudly participated in the FBI Detroit Citizens Academy Program and became a member of its Alumni Association. During this six week program, London joined an esteemed group of fellow Detroit area community and business leaders to hear from Special Agents of the FBI Detroit office on the history of the bureau, and areas of their work. London participated in this incredible program to be part of its community building work. London is very passionate about advocating for the human rights of women and girls, and the LGBTI community. In addition to advocating for policy changes to advance and promote human rights, she also works within local Detroit area communities to increase the knowledge and fluency of the United Nations. London is passionate about building awareness around the international mechanisms local citizens can use to advance grassroots movements. London earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in English at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She went on to earn her Juris Doctor from DePaul University College of Law in Chicago, Illinois. She also earned her Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Law at DePaul University College of Law.  She focused her Master of Law studies in International Human Rights Law & Policy & Criminal Justice.   As a DePaul International Human Rights Law Institute Practicum Student, she researched and analyzed jurisprudence from the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). She also travelled to Lima, Peru in January 2014 to meet with local Peruvian organizations and to gather information about trafficking in persons in Peru. She along with seven of her classmates and law professor co-authored an Alternative Report (Shadow Report) regarding human trafficking of women and girls in Peru. The report was submitted on June 18, 2014 to the United Nations CEDAW Committee for its 58th Session. The purpose of their report was to educate the Committee on whether Peru's domestic laws and policies were effective in combating the trafficking of women and girls in the Madre de Dios and Loretto regions along the Amazon.

Advocate for human rights: https://unausa.org/human-rights/