My name is Diana Muñoz. I like to bake and cook, especially because it is fun and takes my mind off things. I sometimes create new recipes, which takes practice and patience.

My favorite book is Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals. It’s about the struggle to integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, during the Civil Rights Movement. The students faced violence and hatred. Warriors Don’t Cry also teaches the importance of history and resilience.

My hero is Kamala Harris because she was the first woman, Black American, and South Asian American to serve as Vice President of the United States. She also ran for the presidency. She supports criminal justice reform and advocates for equality and civil rights, including voting rights, women’s rights, and LGBTQ+ rights. Ever since I was four, I wanted to be a doctor. I still hope to be a neurosurgeon when I grow up because I want to save people’s lives, while still working in psychology too.

Malcolm X said, “You can’t separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom.” I like this quote because you can’t be at peace if you don’t have your rights, like the freedom to vote, which in the past was a big issue.

This fall, I joined BK2BAMA, a scholarship program that brings students to Alabama and Georgia to visit many places and people connected to Black history and the Civil Rights Movement. To prepare, we also meet twice a week, on Mondays for discussions, and Saturdays for field trips around New York City. I joined BK2BAMA because I want to learn more about Black history, especially the Civil Rights Movement in the South. I am most excited to visit Tuskegee University because in history class I learned that reformer and educator Booker T. Washington founded this school in 1881.