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I found the inspring girl. She is Sophie Cruz, five years old when this photo was taken, slipped through security at a Papal motorcade in 2015 to deliver a letter to Pope Francis requesting that her parents, who are undocumented immigrants, not be deported from the United States.
Cruz, who is now six years old, is still fighting for immigrants' rights. Cruz brought the house down during the Women's March on Washington in January. "We're here to form a chain of love to safeguard our families," Cruz explained.
"Let us fight with love, faith, and courage so that our families are not destroyed," she concluded, before eliciting a cheer of "Si Se Puede!" from the audience.

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While I was looking into young activists I found an article that talks about "32 Young Activists Who Are Changing the World" I love how this article highlights so many young activists that have inspired so many people and bring change to this world. The one that stood out to me was Jazz Jennings because I had heard about her before and watched a documentary about her situation before. Her story is about her coming out as a girl at the age of 5. She uses the publicity she got to speak up for the transgender community and raises money for transgender children.

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You would be forgiven for thinking we live inside a huge, literal steaming pile of garbage. The American political landscape continues to grow increasingly frightening each day, as the world is forced to respond to an ever-increasing series of threats. From raging wildfires on the California coast to Europe recording its worst flooding in decades, environmental crises continue to rampage across the globe. And with police brutality and systemic racism across smultiple communities adding to this chaotic climate, times are extremely tough. So it would be easy to resign yourself to these discouraging realities, especially if you're young. After all, young people are made fun of for every aspect of how we live. How could anyone really take us seriously if we tried to stand up for what we believe in?

But today's young people are no longer taking the guff from anyone-let alone the dinosaurs responsible for how they are living. While those dumpster fires rage on, the indomitable spirit of Gen-Z and younger millennials have made everyone take these matters seriously. Complex is excited to highlight these young voices who are advocating, fighting, and actively taking on the powers that be to stand up for what we all should believe in.

All it takes is one idea and the right mix of determination and willpower to effect change at the local level. Start with one thing you're passionate about then find small, local ways to organize and find solutions to the problem. That's what the 32 people on this list did-some starting at 6 years old. They're here to prove that no matter the obstacle, and no matter your age, you can work hard to leave behind a world that is just a little better than when you found it.

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32 Young Activists Who Are Changing the World

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These are the teens and young adult activists, aged 6 through 22, raising awareness and fighting gun violence, police brutality, immigration reform, and more.

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I found Jaylen Arnold inspiring because, although he had been diagnosed with Tourette's Syndrome, Asperger's and OCD, he had the courage to speak up after being bullied by kids at school. He is speaking up for so many kids in this world who suffer from these diseases and from anxiety getting worse from the bullying. He founded the Jaylen Challenge Foundation, which has helped more than 100,000 children by making them feel welcome and understood.

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A youth activist who I have found inspiring is now sixteen year old Thandiwe Abdullah. Abdullah began her activism in 2013 after the fatal policing shooting of Trayvon Martin a seventeen year old who was shot on his way back home from a convenience store. In 2015 she helped to launch the next generation of black rights activists by becoming a Black Lives Matter youth vanguard. I find her inspiring for speaking out and getting the message of Black Lives Matter in the U.S. schools as the topic in my opinion seems to be brushed over and barely taught in schools. The institutionalized aspects of racism exist in schools across the United States and speaking about the injustices at a young age spreads more awareness. The racism that exists in this country will only be brought to life upon more discussion and how to challenge it. At such a young age I think what Abdullah is doing is truly inspiring.
-Kenna Delgadillo

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A Message...A Movement...A Role Model! ACTIVISM SPOTLIGHT

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MEET THANDIWE ABDULLAH According to Complex.com... In 2013, the Black Lives Matter movement sprouted in response to the murder of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. A couple years later, in 2015, Thandiwe Abdullah helped launch the next generation of Black rights activists-the Black Lives Matter Youth Vanguard. Now, Abdullah is sixteen and she's hailed for playing [...]

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A young person I find inspiring is Mari Copeny aka as "little miss flint". She wrote a letter about the water crisis they were facing in Flint, Michigan which ultimately  led to President Obama visiting and giving Flint $100 million in crisis relief aid. Copeny has worked to create conversation around environmental racism but even more than that she's raised millions of dollars for her community.

Mari raised $500,000 for her Flint Kids project which provided 16,000 backpacks with supplies for children, christmas toys, easter baskets, and so on. Mari also raised $250,000 for water bottles before she shifted into raising $400,000 with a water filter company which provides water filters to children who have toxic water.

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I find Autumn Peltier, now 17 years old from the Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island in northern Ontario, Canada, an inspiring young activist for clean water rights. Peltier realized when she was 12 that Indigenous people on her native island could not drink the water, so she began her fight for clean water. She has shown extreme agency in her work, in 2016 she confronted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about not protecting Indigenous peoples water at the Assembly of First Nations. Peltier was nominated for the International Children's Peace Prize in 2017, 2018 and 2019; as an Ontario Junior Citizen for her environmental advocacy work and won a WE Day award for Youth in Action when she was 12. She has educated people at hundreds of events around the world and has been named a “Water Warrior” for her activism. (Kelsey Boatwright)

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Fifteen-year-old water protector Autumn Peltier, Anishinaabe-kwe, comes from the Wiikwemkoong First Nation on Manitoulin Island in northern Ontario, Canada. It was there, after observing that Indigenous people on the island could not drink the water in their communities, that she began her fight for clean water.

"It all started by learning why my people couldn't drink the water on Ontario Indigenous lands. I was confused because Canada is not a third-world country, but in my country, the Indigenous people live in third-world conditions," she said when she addressed the United Nations Global Landscapes Forum in September 2019.

Peltier was nominated for the International Children's Peace Prizeby the David Suzuki Foundation in 2017, 2018 and 2019. She was also recognized as an Ontario Junior Citizen for her environmental advocacy work and won a WE Day award for Youth in Action when she was 12. She has shared her message at hundreds of events around the world and has been dubbed a "Water Warrior" for her continued activism.

In 2016, she famously confronted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about his failure to protect Indigenous people's water at a meeting of the Assembly of First Nations in 2016. She was just 12 years old when she told him, "I am very unhappy with the choices you made." Through tears, she added only "the pipelines," to which Trudeau responded, "I will protect the water."

In her U.N. speech the following year, Peltier explained that boil water advisories have existed in some Indigenous communities in Canada for over 20 years. She also mentioned learning about Flint, Michigan and other marginalized communities' struggles to obtain clean water around the world.

Peltier's passion comes, in part, from the tradition in which she grew up. Her great-aunt, Josephine Mandamin, served as the chief water commissioner of the Anishinabek Nation, a position Peltier took on when she was just 14. In her 2019 U.N. speech, Peltier described the spiritual significance of water to her people.

"For years and years, our ancestors have passed down traditional oral knowledge that our water is alive and our water has a spirit," she said. "Our first water teaching comes from our mother. We literally live in water for nine months, floating in that sacred water that gives us life."

During her first U.N. speech in 2018, Peltier urged the general assembly to "warrior up" and take serious steps to defend the planet. In 2019, she called for a banning of plastics and a return to older, more sustainable ways of life.

"We can't eat money or drink oil." she said.

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Autumn Peltier: 'Water Warrior' for Marginalized Communities

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Autumn Peltier is passionate about granting communites acess to clean water. It's a cause she has been fighting for since she was at least 12 years old.

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In 2015, Sophie Cruz, five years old at the time, broke through security at a Papal motorcade to give Pope Francis a letter asking that her parents — who are undocumented immigrants — not be deported from the US. She wore a shirt printed with the words "Papa Rescate DAPA," urging the Pope to support the DAPA in D.C
It is just so amazing to me that she was brave enough to speak up for her parents with only being 5  years old.

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I think this girl is inspiring. I am not inspired by children. On the contrary, I do think that this child is inspiring. She brings me back to the days when I was younger and was given the opportunity to sell candy and other things at school around her age. She does so much more with so little time. Her pitch on Shark Tank sold to the highest bidder. She invented the Baby Toon to solve a common problem of children.

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A young person who I find inspiring is Yusra Mardini. She is an olympic swimmer for the Refugee Olympic Athletes Team, she swam at the 2016 and 2020 olympics. She grew up in Damascus but fled Syria in 2015 during the Syrian Civil War after her house was destroyed. Additionally, in 2017 she was appointed as a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador.

I find her inspiring because although she had a terrible experience and had to flee her home it shows that although someone is a refugee it is not the end of the line. I find it inspiring that even though she faced tough circumstances she persevered and competed in one of the greatest sporting events in the world. Furthermore, she is a force for change due to the fact that she is a UNHCR Ambassador and consistently speaks out against injustices against refugees and displaced persons.