In the face of recent social unrest prompted by the non-indictment of police officers, students took action, according to senior Destiny Hulke, one of the group’s three leaders.

The Student Organization Against Racism (SOAR) formed during a student-led meeting at the St. Louis Park library after the student walk-out Dec. 1, Hulke said.

“In the group meeting we had at the library, a couple of students had made the suggestion that we should start a club,” Hulke said.

Hulke, senior Charis Tshihamba and junior Cedar Thomas stepped up as leaders during the meeting. Hulke said all leaders share a common belief.

“We are students who are tired of institutional racism, racism in general, and we are taking a stand on it through this club,” she said.

Sophomore Callia Blake participated in the walk-out and said she plans on joining the group to deal with racism because of the injustice her family has faced being black. She said her relative was shot by the police, who then failed to call for help.

Blake said she needed to feel she was making a change, and wants to deal with systematic racism in places like the classroom.

“If a white kid interrupts during class, he is either laughed at or told ‘please quiet down,’ but if a black kid interrupts during class, he is automatically seen as some bad kid who all he does is interrupt,” Blake said.

According to Arika Mareck, the staff adviser of the group, Blake is not alone. Mareck expects more than a dozen students are ready to participate.

Mareck said she hopes to help these students represent themselves.

“I made a goal with myself to do something to get more student voices and also for me to have more of a connection with students,” Mareck said.

Mareck said she wants to see the group bring about positive change so all students feels like they are worth something.

“The biggest change we’re going to get in education is in the voices of students,” Mareck said. “I want every kid to feel connected to this school and feel like they have value and a place.”

Principal Scott Meyers said he hopes students can use this group to thoughtfully discuss racial issues.

“I hope that it provides an identified space for conversation,” Meyers said.

Hulke said the group is open to all students who want to discuss and deal with issues of racism in the Park community and beyond.

“It’s not just for black people, or just for minority people. It’s for everybody,” Hulke said. “If you are white, latino, asian, black, it doesn’t matter who you are, you can come because you believe in this topic.