But as I told my daughter, and as we discuss in the book, you dont need a bullhorn to raise your voice about the issues you care about. Children and young adults have long taken part in alternative forms of protest, including horseback rides, surfboard paddle outs, bicycle gatherings, concerts, letter writing campaigns and mural painting. There are so many ways to be an activist and our book highlights young people who are changing the world, like pastry chef Paola Velez, 30, of Washington, D.C.
I spoke with Paola recently about her effort to harness her passion for baking as a fund-raising tool to support social-justice projects. In spring of 2020, Paola united with fellow pastry chefs Willa Pelini and Rob Rubba to create Bakers Against Racism. Their goal was to convince 80 bakers to make and sell goods to support organizations doing racial justice work. The response was immense; more than 2,000 bakers in at least 41 states and on five continents around the world signed up.
Daniella Senior, left, a restauranteur, and Paola Velez bake to benefit causes they care about.Credit…Andrew Seavey
For Paola, who grew up in the Bronx, families were key to making the nationwide bake sale a success. When I would think about who can reach the most people, I didnt focus on the celebrity chef. I didnt focus on the influencer, she explained during a recent Zoom interview. I focused on the people that actually knew people. The moms, the dads, the aunties, the cousins, the ones that would have to have this difficult conversation with their family that they might not have had the opportunity to do so, but have been wanting to do for so long.
So far, she said, the organization has raised more than two million dollars in a little over a year for groups such as Black Lives Matter, the United Negro College Fund, the Equal Justice Initiative and the Innocence Project. Whats really beautiful about it is that I started it with, like, zero dollars down, and just the goodness of other people, Paola said. You dont actually have to wait until you have a ton of money to raise a ton of money.read more
Baking the World a Better Place
