At the height of unrest after an unarmed Michael Brown was gunned down by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Mo., one little voice made sure he was heard above the rest at a St. Louis County Council meeting.
Just 10 days after Brown’s death, 11-year-old Marquis Govan stepped up to the podium, lowered the mic, and started breaking down the real issues in Ferguson like a true activist.
“The people of Ferguson, I believe, don’t need tear gas thrown at them,” Marquis said. “I believe they need jobs. I believe the people of Ferguson, they don’t need to be hit with batons. What they need is people to be investing in their businesses.”
He continued, speaking on the situation in Ferguson with no notes and no help:
“You’re paying attention to the looting and things like that, when the real issues aren’t being solved,” he told the council. “There’s a reason why those people are out there.”
Not only has Marquis’ speech put our 11-year-old former selves to shame, but more importantly, his pointed speech made it clear that he understands systematic racism and the issues minorities faced in Ferguson before Brown’s shooting.
And that’s pretty heavy for an 11-year-old.
Later, in an interview with CBS, Marquis made another poignant note that we can’t believe came from a sixth grader.
When CBS’ Jane Pauley asked if he or his peers wanted to be police officers, he responded with this:
“Look, let me tell you why: From the beginning we’ve felt abused by these people. Why would you go up to serve among the abusers? It doesn’t make any sense,” Govan said.
Who is this kid?! Just an 11-year-old interested in politics and activism, according to his guardian and great-grandmother, who tells an endearing story of taking her young grandson to vote and the fire it ignited inside of him.
You can watch a portion of Marquis’ council meeting speech and his amazing interview with CBS in the video above.
And get the Kleenex tissues out. This video and Marquis’ life story will give you all the feels.
SOURCE: YouTube/CBS, NPR
