Kean Human Rights Conference Shows ‘How Gen Z Is Changing the World’

Nearly 1,200 young people recently packed auditoriums at Kean University for the 17th annual Human Rights Conference, where keynote speakers David Hogg and Tiana Day addressed the theme, We Are the Future: How Gen Z Is Changing the World. 

The crowd was the largest in over a decade at the University’s Human Rights Conference, including students and teachers from 30 high schools, plus students from Kean and other universities. 

“Wow, what a powerful sight this is,” said Kean Senior Vice President and Special Counsel to the President Felice Vazquez. “History has shown us that real change is fueled by young people, their willingness to change the status quo and envision a different world, which is the theme of today’s conference. ‘How Gen Z is Changing the World’ is not just a title, it is happening right now.” 

Hogg, 24, an anti-gun violence activist who survived the 2018 Parkland school shooting, and Day, 22, who led a protest after the death of George Floyd when she was just 17, shared their experiences and called on students to work for change.  

Both described what energized them to act. After surviving the shooting that killed 17 classmates and teachers, Hogg said he and friends “decided to do something about it.” The result was March for Our Lives, which drew 800,000 people to protest in Washington, D.C., and more around the world. 

“What I hope that you take away from this conversation is that if you see something wrong in this world, if you have something you’re passionate about, go and work on it,” said Hogg, who went on to co-found Leaders We Deserve. “Realize you’re going to fail a million times. I certainly have. But if you keep going, you eventually will succeed.” 

Day said she felt a calling to hold a social justice protest on the Golden Gate Bridge after Floyd’s death in 2020. Her plan, started with a post on Instagram, led to a crowd of 50,000 marchers. 

She created the non-profit Youth Advocates for Change and works to inspire leadership through service, art and intersectional advocacy. She spoke of the need for empathetic leadership and “leading with love.” 

“This is so much greater than our own experiences,” she said. “If we don’t have empathy and love at the center of what we’re doing, when we’re leading movements, it doesn’t matter.” 

Kean’s Human Rights Institute hosts the Conference each year to explore human rights issues of global importance. Along with the keynote addresses, the event featured a Q&A session moderated by Assistant Vice President for Global Initiatives Jessica Goldsmith Barzilay, audience participation activities for students, and award presentations. 

“There is nothing I like better than to see young people this charged up about human rights,” said Barzilay, who led an interactive audience poll, then moderated the Q&A session with the speakers. 

Attendees said they were impressed. 

“I loved it. It was so inspirational,” said Carteret High School junior Sofia Cepeda.  

Hoboken High School teacher Karen Koerner led a group of students from her Holocaust and Genocide Studies class. “We talk a lot about human rights,” she said. “They want to be part of the solution.” 

Scotch Plains-Fanwood social studies teacher Dan Valentine called the event “an absolutely amazing experience, for the kids to hear from kids who were around their own age. It can’t help but inspire them.” 

Adara Goldberg, Ph.D., executive director of the Holocaust Resource Center and Human Rights Institute at Kean, said events such as the conference are vital in the work of shining a light on injustice and empowering leaders. All the attending teachers will receive a “digital educator’s tool kit” to use in teaching about human rights. 

“This will allow educators to extend engagement and learning,” she said. “The impact will continue.” 

The Human Rights Conference also included the presentation of the following awards:  

• Outstanding Human Rights Activist: David Hogg 

• Outstanding Human Rights Activist: Tiana Day 

• Outstanding High School Human Rights Activist: Josie Nuzzo, a student at Kittatinny Regional High School recognized for leadership at the high school's Holocaust Center. 

• Outstanding Kean Student Human Rights Activist: Rashaad Couloote ’23, who is now pursuing his master’s degree in forensic psychology at Kean. 

• Dr. Hank Kaplowitz Outstanding Human Rights Educator: Kate Okeson, an art educator and human rights leader recognized for contributions to New Jersey education for students and faculty.