The theme for Youth Forum Switzerland (YFS) 2021 was RESET. A difficult few years with Covid-19, quarantine, and lockdown gave us the opportunity to “reset,” meaning we were able to reflect on personal matters as well as global issues. This meant contemplating how, when, and why we should improve upon these issues. During lockdown and the rise of the BlackLivesMatter movement in response to the death of George Floyd, I was forced to reflect more deeply on the different forms of racism in my interpersonal life as well as in school. It reminded me that the type of racism that most people were aware of did not coincide with the type of racism that people face every day. Subsequently, alongside the YFS 2021 theme of RESET and my own personal introspection, I was reminded that we as a society need a new understanding of racism. In response, I was inspired to write a speech for YFS 2021 through which we could have an honest discussion about overt and covert racism.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------Michaela Johnson is a grade 12 student at The International School of Zug and Luzern.