Truman Hamburger is a junior at Dickinson High School and co-founder of the Student Advocates of North Dakota.

At school, he’s involved in speech and Student Congress – an extracurricular activity he’s been involved with for the last five years. At home, he likes woodworking and tinkering in the garage.

But more than that, Truman likes to get involved in his community, which is why he helped organize the recent protest against House Bill 1298, discriminatory legislation targeting transgender student athletes.

QUESTION: Why are you involved in Student Advocates of North Dakota?

ANSWER: Around the beginning of the school year, Athalia Haughton and I were discussing all the horrible bills in the House and our dissatisfaction with other student groups’ ability to affect change. That dissatisfaction would eventually lead to the creation of SAND - Student Advocates of North Dakota. 

Q: Why do you think it’s important for young people to be involved in their communities?

A: Young people often think that their opinions don't matter, and are often told they don't, simply because they cannot vote. A big part of SAND is showing kids that not only do their opinions matter but they can change the world for the better. Most kids have a little portal to the entire world in their pockets, so there is no excuse for not being active in our communities.

Q: Do you have any advice for someone who might be interested in getting more politically involved in their community?

A: If anyone wants to get involved with their communities, all you have to do is look. Speaking from experience, there are always groups in need of help. Whether it’s helping the food banks for an afternoon or driving to the Capitol to protest, you can find a place to help!

Q: Which of the Constitution’s Amendments are most important to you and why?

A: I have never been known to shut up. The First Amendment is so important to me because of my firm belief in standing up for what you believe in, even if you are the only one. 

Q: What issues do you think are most important for the North Dakota Legislature?

A: I believe that the North Dakota Legislature is facing an uncertain future, We have a predominately farming and ranching based economy, and where we are heading with climate change, we could be seeing many issues in the near future. 

Q: Which of the ACLU’s issue areas are you particularly passionate about and why?

A: I am incredibly passionate about free speech and First Amendment rights. I believe that everyone has the right to speak out about what they think!

Q: What plans do you have after high school?

A: After high school, I want to get a secondary education in law and hopefully go into politics and political activism full time!

Athalia Haughton is a junior at Century High School in Bismarck and president of the Student Advocates of North Dakota.

The student activist – who is also involved in debate, theater, and student council – wants to make a difference in her community.

You might even see her run for office someday! But until then, she’s doing what she can to make North Dakota better for her friends and neighbors, which is why she helped organize the recent protest against House Bill 1298, discriminatory legislation targeting transgender student athletes.

QUESTION: Why are you involved in Student Advocates of North Dakota (SAND)?

ANSWER: I’ve always wanted to serve the community around me. I would say that one of my best characteristics is the ability to empathize with people and I feel for others’ struggles and I want to help them as much as possible. I think about every time I’ve struggled with a system that wants to push me out and I think about how much I wish someone would’ve been there to help me. Although I can’t change the past, I can be there for others – even if it’s just a little, I can help ease their burden. A lot of times, the biggest thing is just showing someone you’re in their corner. That’s why I created SAND.

Q: Why do you think it’s important for young people to be involved in their communities?

A: Because no one is going to represent us if not us. The best advocate for this younger generation is ourselves, and we have so much potential if only we would tap into it. We often hear that “we are the future,” but we seldom realize the power that gives us. We seldom act like it. Being the future is not a passive act – it is a role we should be actively taking. We should be learning how to function in this society that we will one day run.

Q: Do you have any advice for someone who might be interested in getting more politically involved in their community?

A: Start now! It is never too early to start, and truthfully I wish I would’ve started sooner. The conversation and depth of character that you will gain from participating in the world around you is indescribably wonderful. I would also say that the best way to start is a Google search. Look at a bunch of different sources, not just one, and do your research about what’s going on. I know this is a little cliché, but you want to be informed, not influenced.

Q: When did you first hear about the ACLU?

A: I actually first heard about the ACLU in one of my history classes at school. I then came into clearer contact with the ACLU this past year through SAND.

Q: Which of the Constitution’s Amendments are most important to you and why?

A: The Ninth Amendment is one that I find to be super important. As our government expands with little chance of contraction, it is very important and comforting to know that my rights are not limited to those explicitly written down and that as time progresses, no infringements can be pressed on my rights.

Q: What issues do you think are most important for the North Dakota Legislature?

A: I think the North Dakota Legislature should be focused on clean energy and finding a way to move forward once the oil starts to run out (although one could argue that it has already). I also think that they should focus more energy and attention on schools and making sure that they promote mental health. I know that they are working out having therapists in school, so I think that’s a great first step that should be accompanied by others.

Q: Which of the ACLU’s issue areas are you particularly passionate about and why?

A: I love the work that the ACLU is doing to protect trans people and trans athletes! I love that they’re tackling this because I’m friends with so many people in the LGBTQ+ community and it is so demoralizing to see how they are treated in North Dakota. Seeing legislative attacks against them is abhorrent.

I know that the ACLU also works with racial justice, and although I haven’t worked with them on this yet I would love to in the future. As a Black girl who has faced so much racism, I want to help fight the system and make America a better place for future little girls so they never have to go through what I’ve been through.

Q: What plans do you have after high school?

A: Currently, I’m planning on going to Howard University. I want to get my law degree and then hopefully run for office. Even if I’m not elected, I would like to write policy and impact my community in any way possible.

Imagine you’ve forgotten once again the difference between a gorilla and a chimpanzee, so you do a quick Google image search of “gorilla.” But instead of finding images of adorable animals, photos of a Black couple pop up.

Is this just a glitch in the algorithm? Or, is Google an ad company, not an information company, that’s replicating the discrimination of the world it operates in? How can this discrimination be addressed and who is accountable for it?

“These platforms are encoded with racism,” says UCLA professor and best-selling author of Algorithms of Oppression, Dr. Safiya Noble. “The logic is racist and sexist because it would allow for these kinds of false, misleading, kinds of results to come to the fore…There are unfortunately thousands of examples now of harm that comes from algorithmic discrimination.”

On At Liberty this week, Dr. Noble joined us to discuss what she calls “algorithmic oppression,” and what needs to be done to end this kind of bias and dismantle systemic racism in software, predictive analytics, search platforms, surveillance systems, and other technologies.

https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/987598933