- [Announcer] Funding for this program has been provided by (guitar rock music) - Hi, I'm Olivia and welcome to Young Creators Studio.

All across our region, young creators are using video not only for social media platforms, but to tell stories that deserve to be seen and heard.

Whether they are self-taught, learning in classrooms, or art programs, we are giving them the space to share their creative and informative films so kick back and grab a snack, this is Young Creators Studio.

- [Jacob] Philadelphia received an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots.

Its challenge and a learning experience for election officials.

- Walls For Justice started the weekend after George Floyd was killed.

- So she decided to run for president in 1972 to a mixed reaction of praise and doubt.

- Built in 1908, the Franklin learning center high school in Philadelphia is home to a diverse body of 879 students and decades of neglect.

- So we're taking the problems, finding solutions, and trying to reduce the carbon footprint.

- Our future's matter.

- Our future's matter.

- Our futures matter.

(pop rock music begins) - Welcome to Young Creators Studio.

This past year was filled with a lot of hurt, pain and uncertainty.

We saw injustices against people of color far too often.

Trying to make sense of these tragedies wasn't easy while we were stuck inside of our homes.

But to be honest, if there was a bright side, it was seeing people of all colors, backgrounds, and ages using their voices.

These are the themes that we'll see in our upcoming films.

Films that focus on a political game changer, climate change, and the continued fight for equality.

- [Jacob] Philadelphia and its voters face numerous potential challenges in the upcoming general election.

Earlier this month, the city relied on fewer polling places and used unmonitored drop-off boxes to collect primary ballots.

Both of which are now the subject of lawsuits.

The city received an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots, something that was both a challenge and a learning experience for election officials.

- We were fortunate to get a lot of help from various other city departments that helped us, but really it's a lot of work.

I mean, people can think about it 170,000 ballots but when you see what that looks like in envelopes, it was really a daunting task.

- [Jacob] However several groups still have issues with the way the election was handled and the plans for the general election in November.

President Trump's reelection campaign is suing Pennsylvania for the use of drop-off mailboxes like those used in Philadelphia, but not everyone agrees with the concerns over ballot security.

- Drop boxes are like a low tech really secure way of letting, giving people more opportunity to pass the ballot.

And I have not seen anything that I think casts real meaningful doubt on any of those drop boxes.

- [Jacob] The NAACP Pennsylvania state conference also has problems with Pennsylvania's election plans.

It recently sued state election officials over the discriminatory nature of the COVID-19 effected voting processes in Philadelphia and across the state.

- Well, my greatest fear is the state president of NAACP of Pennsylvania is, is that every vote is counting, that every vote is counted.

I think for us as a civil rights organization, whose history is ensuring and assuring that all Americans in particular, Pennsylvanians, have the right to vote and have their vote counted.

So one of my greatest concerns, Jacob, is is whether or not there's one vote that's not counted that should have been.

- [Jacob] Lastly, there's the issue of time.

There were long delays in the primary election results and with more votes being cast and more on the line, the city will need to be quicker in it's counting.

- Because voters, especially Philadelphia voters.

They're used to going to bed on election night and knowing who won and who lost.

So it is a sea change.

It is a big change and people, you know, we're going to have to do everything we can to manage that expectation, to educate people on the process.

And also we have a responsibility to make sure that we can do it as fast as we can, but as accurately as we can also.

- [Jacob] For broadcast by the bay, I'm Jacob Small.

- What's a game changer?

- What is a game changer?

- What is a game changer?

- What's a game changer?

- What is a game changer?

- What is a game changer?

- What's a game changer?

- What is a game changer?

- What he was saying about his work, it was very like motivational because everyone's seen his work and he's fixing up places.

It makes me like want to go help other people.

- It was Samuel Rodriguez.

When I was in high school I found a program called the Mural Arts program.

Was introduced to, you know, the art practice of mural making and I was also introduced to my mentor.

Walls For Justice started in the weekend of June 4th in 2020 directly the weekend after George Floyd was killed.

Community wanting to come together and protest and bring justice to what has happened.

- After the George Floyd protest, stores were looted and vandalized.

Windows and doors were destroyed and stores had to be boarded up.

No one thought that they could be fixed or look nice again.

The 52nd street area was hit worse than any other Plaza and it was hard seeing everything all boarded up and destroyed.

- The idea was to turn the whole shopping center into like a walk-in art gallery.

So this time at 52nd street it was completely different.

They said, "We want to see George Floyd", "We want to see Brianna Taylor", We want to see one of your beautiful quotes and highlight the community as a round.

My message to you guys is everyone can make a difference in the world as long as you seek to inspire people with your talents and you use that one thing to inspire someone else and what will happen is a ripple effect will happen.

And you know, you just be the example.

- This is a game changer.

- A contrarian is defined as someone who is unwavering in their principles in the face of adversity.

Would you follow your dream even if it meant facing opposition?

Shirley Chisholm did.

She made history by being the first black person to run for president in the United States in America.

Shirley Chisholm came from humble beginnings born to two immigrant parents in Brooklyn, New York, the oldest of four girls.

As a child, Chisholm spent a lot of time with her grandmother due to her parents hectic work schedules.

She would go on to attend girls high and get married shortly after.

She studied and worked through early childhood education for years before she decided to pursue a career in politics.

When she finally did enter politics in 1953, she faced copious pushback for being a woman, but she persisted.

She went on to get elected to the New York state assembly and Congress.

Shirley decided to run for president in 1972 and announced her campaign at her local Baptist church to a mixed reaction of praise and doubt.

- I stand before you today as a candidate for the democratic nomination for the presidency of the United States of America.

- So no surprise she faced countless amounts of backlash and sabotage attempts at her campaign.

Her campaign was severely underfunded.

She struggled to be taken seriously as a candidate and she was even blacklisted by the democratic party.

Although people doubted her, she didn't yield.

When all was said and done, Shirley didn't get that many votes.

She didn't see that much media coverage and she didn't meet much praise for her efforts either.

When none of that was ever her goal to begin with, which represented what few accomplished.

The examples that she set for the youth in those times was far more important than any vote.

She herself even said- - I am not the candidate of Black America, although I am black and proud.

I am not the candidate of the woman's movement of this country, although I am a woman and I am equally proud of that.

I am not the candidate of any political bosses or fatcats or special interests I stand here now without endorsements from many big name politicians or celebrities or any other kind of prop.

I am the candidate of the people of America.

- Shirley once stated that the time she spent with her grandmother had a positive impact on her life.

She said that her grandmother gave her strength, dignity, and love.

She learned from an early age that she was somebody.

She didn't need the black revolution to tell her that.

Well, I believe that her impact just that or many other children.

She may not have won the presidency, but by running, she was teaching many other black children that they can do the same.

They can have the same confidence, the same power, and the same respect as anyone else and that was more important than any vote count.

That is why I choose Shirley Chisholm as my game changer.

- What do we want?

- Safe schools!

- When do we want it?

- Now!

- What do we want?!

- Safe schools!

- When do we want it?!

- Now!

- What do we want?!

- Safe schools!

- [Hannah] Built in 1908, the Franklin learning center high school in Philadelphia is home to a diverse body of 879 students and decades of neglect.

Ours is one of 10 schools in Philadelphia that temporarily closed down due to the discovery of hazardous air quality.

The culprit?

Asbestos.

- Me and a group of friends, we felt as though that the situation that was happening in our school wasn't going the correct way for our health or even the people that's around us so we decided to try to make a change by making a group.

- [Hannah] The group is called The Change Makers.

Scales and other students organized a school-wide walkout in early January.

- They weren't going to clean up our school until the end of the school year in the summertime so we're just walking around breathing in the same things.

- [Hannah] Student journalists from our school began reporting on high asbestos levels in the building almost three years ago.

Teachers were also reporting issues concerning asbestos, strange dust clouds coming from the ventilation systems, flaking lead paint and mold.

For two years, maintenance request went on answered.

Late last year, everything changed.

- I received a phone call that stated that they had found in one of our air ducks, a small amount of asbestos.

At that point, okay, we have to send the letters home to close the school immediately.

- [Hannah] After the students were sent on winter break three days early, Franklin learning center teachers marched to the school district building with a statement of demands.

- We basically asked for transparency.

We were tired of being told that everything's okay, and that everything that's not okay, will be taken care of.

- If we cannot guarantee the physical safety of our students, the students have to wonder if they're safe, if they're going to be healthy being in the school building.

It makes it impossible to do the type of like higher level thinking and the higher level instruction that we all want to be occurring in these classrooms.

- [Hannah] Students came back to school but not quietly.

Parents and teachers rallied outside the school.

A few days later, the students organized a school-wide walk out.

- The Change Makers, we felt as though it was everyone's problem because we're still to be going here for many years.

And the Change Makers, they're 9th graders, 11th graders, 7th graders, we're all different ages.

- The thing is we're supposed to be the children of tomorrow, the children of today, the children of the future.

If that's the case then why aren't y'all helping us, School district?

- We need to solve the issue instead of just keep brushing it by sweeping it under the rug.

- In January, the union representing Philadelphia school teachers sued the district alleging and mishandled the cleanup of schools across the city.

- We're fighting against essentially decades of basically inertia.

- Glen Johnson was a biology teacher at Franklin learning center for 16 years.

Her teaching career ended suddenly in late 2015 after she became severely ill. - But I had every intention they can allow, which got a return and it just didn't work out that way.

- [Hannah] Johnson was recently diagnosed with Sarcoidosis, an inflammatory lung disease.

The cause of this disease is unknown, but research suggests it could be linked to environmental factors.

She was never able to return to the classroom and the students she loved.

- Even though the building might've caused my illness, I would not regret or I would not take back one day because it actually allowed me to fulfill my purpose.

- So how is it?

That our city is allowed to have our schools fall under this type of condition, knowing it for years, and not do anything to counteract it.

Now I'm here to fight.

- [Hannah] This issue has been going on for decades.

In 1984, the school district is fined by the environmental protection agency for failing to properly post warnings about asbestos in the Franklin learning center and other Philadelphia schools.

In 1996, momentum picked up when 150 students locked arms and blocked the entrance to the school and protest.

The school district promises $30 million to tear down Franklin learning center and rebuild.

More than a decade later, there's only been a fraction of the work that's been done.

- With Franklin learning center, we get this window into the idea that it's not just the people now, it's the people before them, the people before them, over many, many, many decades who either didn't act or felt they couldn't act and that this is a systemic long-term problem.

In addition to being a short-term problem.

- [Hannah] With its heavy reliance on local taxes to support schools, Pennsylvania is consistently ranked among the most unequal U.S states for the way funds public education.

On top of that, Philadelphia is a historic city with old buildings that can contain hazardous materials.

- And then there are buildings throughout the country, quite honestly, that have asbestos containing materials in them.

So this is an issue that is just bigger than the school district of Philadelphia and bigger than Philadelphia in general and the state of Pennsylvania.

- [Hannah] Nearly three quarters of Philadelphia's public schools are assessed to be in poor conditions as a result of delayed maintenance.

Fixing the aging buildings will cost a district around $5 billion.

Now with the stay at home orders that are in place due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the future of our school is even more uncertain.

- I believe that the school district should take a stand and help our school out.

And I know that we're not the only school in the district that has these problems, but they should make more of an immediate reaction then let us keep continuing to breathe in the same problems.

- [Hannah] More important than any financial struggle, students at Franklin learning center deserve clean air to breathe.

Our classmates feel their education and safety are in danger.

We want change.

And if there's one thing we've learned from school, its that together our voices are stronger.

For the PBS news hour student reporting labs, I'm Hannah Woodruff.

- Recently, eighth graders participate in the global climate strike, a collection of students around the world taking off of school to fight for change.

- In particular, a change apparent from the mid to late 20th century onwards, and attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels, or as you might know it, the planet getting really hot and humans eventually going extinct.

Basically climate change is when fossil fuels are burned and bending dangerous greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

These greenhouse gases get trapped and absorb sunlight and solar radiation that has bounced off of the earth surface.

This means heat from the sun can only go into the Earth's atmosphere, not out.

This is called the greenhouse effect.

- Keep the temperature down!

Keep carbon underground!

- We can't get another earth.

We can't just get a new atmosphere.

We have one earth and it's time to take action.

We have 11 years.

That's 11 before what we're doing to the planet becomes irreversible and that may seem like a lot of time, but that number is only going to get smaller so believe me, when I tell you that 11 years is not a lot of time.

Many people think of themselves when they ask, is it worth giving up all of the resources and ways of life that they hold so dear?

But think of your children, think of your grandchildren and your great-grandchildren.

It's not okay.

It is simply not fair to put them through a life of misery.

(student cheering) - We could plant more.

We could plant more trees and plants.

We could pick up any trash that we find on the, on the streets and sidewalk.

Use less air conditioning or heaters in different types of weather.

Things that allow you to use less electricity.

- Take the math energy that we use in the classroom daily and reduce it by as much as possible while still making it as functional as possible.

So we're taking the problems, finding solutions, and trying to reduce the carbon footprint.

- There's a theory called the great filter theory.

The theory is an attempt to explain why we have found no sign of intelligent life in the vast amount of space that we have observed.

The theory states that there is a place in time for every intelligent species where their entire existence is threatened.

Only when the species pushes past the great filter can it be truly successful.

Some believe that the barriers behind us, perhaps it was the black death, or the Holocaust, or even simply coming into existence.

Some believe that the filter's ahead of us, perhaps a nuclear war or another great plague, but I believe that we have just reached it.

And the great filter is simply us killing ourselves by destroying the planet that we live on.

- Because like Greta Thunberg says, "We need to act as if our house is on fire because it is".

- [Jacob] I wish life was like this.

I wish I could swim with the current of a stream.

Nothing in my path except for life but life is not like this.

(police sirens) We have been running a race in a place our ancestors built.

We continue to live in this place that has been made to show hate against us.

A cycle of 400 plus years of hate that has continued to inflict tears, pain, grief, fear, death, and inequality.

America has never been the land of the free.

We have been sick and tired of being sick and tired since the origin of this hate.

We are the ones who have been working towards a better future for all of us in this land of unjust despair, or we are killed because of the color of our skin and hate in the hearts of sick people.

If I am not next, I wish my kids, and their kids, and future generations beyond are judged by the content of their hearts and minds instead.

This land was made to help those in power maintain it and watch us suffocate.

We have to swim against brutal waves and pass sharp and jagged rocks to live in America.

And to those who support this revolution for a better future, we need to change this wicked system and to my brothers and sisters, I want you to know that you matter.

- You matter.

- You matter.

- You matter.

- You matter.

- You matter.

- We matter.

- We matter.

- We matter.

- We matter.

- We matter.

- We matter.

- Our futures matter.

- Our future's matter.

- Our future's matter.

- And our future's matter.

- Our future's matter.

- Our future's matter.

- And we will cross this finish line and fly together.

But to those who still don't get it... - Stop right there!

Put your hands up!

Get on the ground!

- How does this make you feel?

(gun shot fires) Because I can't breathe and my brothers and sisters can't either.

(piano music playing) (markers scribbling) (rock music) - I want to thank all of our young creators for sharing their stories with us today and give a special shout out to all of the teachers and instructors who inspire these young storytellers.

Thanks for watching Young Creators Studio.

To watch past episodes, head to our website.

I'm Olivia, and I'll see you next time.

(rock music)