Young people ages 15-21 serve as advisors and creatives behind social media campaigns and outreach programs to spread the message that Gen Z is SNUG – Safer Not Using Guns
In its inaugural class, the Creator Corps will focus on social media content creation and amplification
CHICAGO – Today, Project Unloaded, an organization reducing gun violence through youth-powered culture and narrative change, unveiled its 2024-2025 Youth Council. The announcement follows U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy’s recent recommendation to leverage the successful playbook that dramatically curbed cigarette use – Project Unloaded’s model – to fight gun violence.
Following a competitive application process, 20 high school and college students were selected to serve a year-long term on Project Unloaded’s Youth Council. The Youth Council advises on social media campaigns and projects and acts as public ambassadors for the organization. An additional 15 students were selected for the first-ever Creator Corps: a cohort focused on crafting engaging, data-backed social media content sharing the facts on gun ownership and gun violence designed to connect with their peers.
“As an organization focused on inspiring a generational shift away from gun use, Project Unloaded’s Youth Council is an essential part of everything we do,” said Project Unloaded founder and president Nina Vinik. “We believe young people are our best hope for turning the page on our nation’s gun violence crisis. And I’m looking forward to seeing how this enthusiastic group of young leaders will make their mark.”
Selected students come from urban, suburban, and rural communities across more than a dozen states. The group includes those with direct experience with gun violence and a history of advocacy, as well as young people who are new to the movement to prevent gun violence and worried about gun violence impacting their lives.
“From music and video games to our social media feeds, guns seem to be everywhere in our culture,” said Lily Lee-Sin and Shiven Patel, co-chairs of the 2024-2025 Youth Council. “But we can change that, and it starts with choosing not to use them. In reaching our peers, we can spread the message that guns are the problem, not the solution. We can rewrite this narrative so it’s clear to our generation and all that follow that we’re safer unarmed.”
2024-2025 Youth Council Members:
- Esha Ambre, Fremont, CA, 17
- Cherie Animashaun, Skokie, IL, 19
- Presley Barner, Philadelphia, PA, 18
- Madhurum Bhuvan, Fremont, CA, 18
- Clara Biggs, Dunwoody, GA, 16
- Malick Mikayil Cisse, Brooklyn, NY, 17
- Cheyenne Desmond, Washington, PA, 17
- Celia Fuentes, Chicago, IL, 19
- Carys Gill, Silver Spring, MD, 16
- Zoe Kaufman, Evanston, IL, 19
- Lily Lee-Sin, 17, Evans, GA, 17
- Laia McClain, Chicago, IL, 15
- Sarsha O’Sullivan, La Grange Park, IL, 16
- Shiven Patel, Fremont, CA, 17
- Madelyn Plansky, Durham, NC, 20
- Ariana Rahman, Tempe, AZ, 17
- Joel Siegel, Kansas City, MO, 17
- Edgar Vilchez, Chicago, IL, 19
- Conor Webb, Albany, NY, 18
- Jayden Wright, Chicago, IL, 17
2024-2025 Creator Corps:
- Suhani Ahuja, Fremont, CA, 16
- Neomie Allouche, San Francisco, CA, 17
- Lasya Averineni, South Lyon, MI, 17
- Paige Carter, Evansville, IN, 21
- Anvesha Guru, Brookfield, WI, 17
- Emma Hackbarth, New York, NY, 19
- Isabella Hodkinson, Annandale, NJ, 17
- Danielle Phillips, Washington, PA, 18
- Anushka Praveen, Pleasanton, CA, 16
- Aarna Suresh, Mountain House, CA, 15
- Chyanne Swain, Mount Vernon, NY, 16
- Arav Tyagi, Fremont, CA, 17
- Laya Venkatasubramanian, Bloomington, IL, 17
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