“After getting involved with REEP,
I've really come out of my shell.”

Keara Sierra
REEP Member

Keara is a REEP member from Roxbury.

I grew up in Roxbury; I was born and raised here. Now I’m a senior at Boston Day and Evening Academy. My mom used to volunteer at ACE, so I’ve been around here since I was seven and I always really looked up to the REEPers. When I heard that they were looking for a new crew of REEPers, I jumped to it!

ACE is a place where your voice can get heard and you can expand your horizons. It gives youth a chance to express our opinions. That’s especially important for us: This is a place that's safe, where we’re welcomed. It doesn’t matter who you are.

Right now I’m working on one of REEP’s three campaigns: the Food Justice campaign. We’re working to get more community gardens and healthier restaurants in lower-income communities, not just fast food. We want fresh food and more options. At first it was hard starting the campaign, but now I feel like we’re getting the hang of it. I’m feeling confident.

What really frustrates me is that the city knows fast food restaurants are bad, but they continue to put them in lower-income communities. That’s messed up! That’s why I’m happy we have the chance to fight for food justice. I want everyone to be healthy.

To me, environmental justice means fighting for what you want. You have to be the one to make the change. I used to be really shy about speaking in front of people. After getting involved with REEP, I’ve really come out of my shell. Now I’m outspoken!

I would really love to throw a huge block party where the whole community could come and eat different food, listen to music, dance…For me it’s really all about the community. I hope that our youth organizers will always stay confident and positive. It’s gonna get hard sometimes, but we’ve got to do whatever we can.

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