Over the summer, team member Anna Takis sent a link in our group chat; the article attached detailed the tragic story of the Afghan Girls' Robotics team. The team had been denied travel visas to come to Constitution Hall to compete in a July robotics tournament, though the girls' team had traveled twice to the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul, in hopes of obtaining VISAS, and was denied both times. Our team was heartbroken as we read the girls' story; our own team experienced our fair share of struggles as an all-girls team in a primarily male-dominated field, but nothing we had faced came close to registering on the same spectrum as the struggles faced by the Afghan girls. We texted back and forth for a few minutes, lamenting over their hardships and wishing there was something we could do. Though the struggle seemed half a world away, we decided to give our best shot at making a difference.
Step 1: Researching, Drafting, and Writing a Petition.
Our idea started out small, as it was primarily just to spread the article around, hoping to raise awareness. But things quickly escalated, and we had soon brainstormed an an ambitious plan; because the tournament was to be held so soon, we figured it would be nearly impossible to get the girls visas for their tournament, and instead we aimed to get them visas for later in the fall. Our plan was as follows: write a We the People Petition, obtain a set number of signatures, and organize a tournament to be held at our school in November (2017) in honor of the girl’s team, which we hoped they would be able to attend. Our plan was ambitious, and easier said than done.
We started out researching the different platforms for petitions, and decided that, because the matter was so directly tied to the government and state department, we should head straight to the source. The White House has a petition platform, We The People; we began by researching the process of creating a petition on this site.
To get the petition in front of Congress:
We started out researching the different platforms for petitions, and decided that, because the matter was so directly tied to the government and state department, we should head straight to the source. The White House has a petition platform, We The People; we began by researching the process of creating a petition on this site.
To get the petition in front of Congress:
- The link starts out unlisted (only people who have the direct link can see the petition). Here, you must get 250 signatures.
- Once you have 250 signatures on an unlisted link, the petition becomes public on the We the People site (along with roughly twenty other petitions), which means that anyone who is visiting the site can view and sign the petition.
- Finally, we needed 100,000 signatures on the petition within 30 days
Step 2: Using Social Media
The magnitude of the number 100,000 hit us quickly; gaining that many signatures would be no easy feat. When we launched the petition one of the major concerns was spreading the link around, as we needed more awareness about our project in order to obtain as many signatures as possible. First, we texted close friends and family and asked them to sign and spread the petition. Then we posted the link on personal Facebooks, Twitters, and Instagrams, as well ask posting in our school’s booster club and having friends with many followers retweet our petition. We also contacted a handful of organizations that focus on girls in STEM and asked them to spread our petition on their own social media pages.
TRUMP INTERVENES TO GRANT VISAS TO THE GIRLS!
A Shoutout From Team Afghanistan
One of the coolest things that came out of this entire project, was a shout out from the Afghan girls' robotics team. While we received contacts for the girl's coach through a maze of reporters, we never really expected we would be able to get directly in touch with the girls. A reporter in Afghanistan passed this link along, and it was truly amazing and inspiring to see and know that word of our efforts reached the girls' team.
Women 2.0 Article
Another really cool thing that came out of this for our team was an article on our efforts through Women 2.0, a feminist platform and blog. (linked below)
women2.com/stories/2017/8/24/meet-the-girls-robotics-team-that-stood-up-for-their-afghan-counterparts
women2.com/stories/2017/8/24/meet-the-girls-robotics-team-that-stood-up-for-their-afghan-counterparts
Speaking to Sixth Graders about our Experience -- The Real Me Group
Our Upper School counselor, Josie Woods, sent our robotics team an email earlier in October, asking if we could speak to a group of sixth graders. This is a group of sixth grade girls, called The Real Me, which meets once a month to discuss embracing identity. Our robotics team went to present to this group, speaking about our project earlier this summer relating to the Afghan Girl’s Robotics team. We shared an abbreviated version of our story, then played the video in which the Afghan girls shouted out the Potomac School. To close, we each shared one piece of information which we wished we had known in sixth grade; all of us touched on embracing your passion, and going for your goals regardless of stereotypes, judgement, and “what the crowd does.” All in all, it was a great experience, and a very special opportunity to encourage a classroom of girls to pursue their interests, and possibly join our school’s robotics team!