Xavier’s favorite quote can be found in his journal, behind his LinkedIn profile picture and etched into his memory. So, it’s no surprise that it reveals what he values most in this world: community.
“
We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
As a first-generation student with family members who weren’t afforded the same opportunities, it’s impossible for Xavier to view the world through a singular lens. Instead, he considers the many underlying factors that fuel our experiences.
During his first campus visit at Reed College, what struck a chord was not the beautiful campus he will soon call home, but the words his mother spoke beside him.
“Going to college is a lot more personal because my parents couldn’t go,” shares Xavier. “When I toured Reed College with my mom, she said that if she could go to college that would be the college that she would attend. So, I feel like I’m going to college for both of us and carrying on a dream that’s larger than my own.”
Drawing from his own upbringing and the experiences of those around him, Xavier brings an intersectional approach into local government as a champion for youth and people from communities that have often been overlooked across Multnomah County.
A “Gut Feeling”
While Xavier was an incredibly quiet child growing up, he’s always had a deep sense of justice. You could occasionally find him sticking up for his older sister against bullies twice his age. Before Xavier found spaces to express himself, journaling was his outlet.
For years, wherever Xavier went, so did his journal. Inside those pages lived his most profound thoughts about the world around him and quotes written by leaders who spoke up for what they believed in.
“In school, when we talk about unfairnesses that have happened throughout history, there’s just a gut feeling in my stomach that doesn’t sit right with me and it motivates action,” says Xavier. “If I don’t do anything with it, where is that negative feeling going to go? I feel like it’s not okay to sit with those feelings when you can use them for something positive.”
In Xavier’s case, that “something positive” means using his voice to support his community at Reynolds High School and helping other young people feel empowered to do the same.
Speaking Up and Empowering Others
Xavier’s journey in politics began with Participatory Budgeting Oregon, a nonprofit working to implement more just public budgeting across the state. There, he worked as a student leader on a project titled “Youth Voice, Youth Vote,” where he championed participatory budgeting by introducing the concept to youth through public assemblies, facilitating conversations with school officials and lobbying at the state capitol.
Through this work, Xavier helped establish the first public school pilot program for participatory budgeting in Oregon that allocates $7,000 from the Reynolds School District to give back to students so that they are able to address the concerns they see in their community.
This was an especially meaningful project for Xavier, who has witnessed a pattern of gang violence in his community that impacted his own parents when they were teenagers attending Reynolds. Xavier notes how conflict often goes hand-in-hand with a lack of mental wellness, he champions spaces where youth can reflect and connect with one another.
“Reynolds has been hit with so many challenges, yet this community has the most passion and dedication that I’ve seen,” shares Xavier. “This pilot program provides a resource and outlet for students to unleash that and keep the solutions within the community that it’s going to benefit. Too often, we see that impactful decisions are disconnected from the communities that are being served.”
It’s no easy feat to capture all that Xavier has done to help make his community a better place – he is currently involved with nine organizations! Most of his work centers around amplifying youth voices in local government, and he’s learned a lot from his time as the Chair of the Youth Advisory Council with the City of Gresham.
“A lot of the things that I’m a part of and that I’m doing, I didn’t hear in the classroom. I heard about them through AVID and College Possible,” shares Xavier. “These organizations realize how important it is for youth to be involved outside of just their school community, to be an active participant in their communities, and be civically engaged.”
What’s On The Horizon
As the end of his high school journey approaches, Xavier is excited to attend Reed College this upcoming fall; a moment he’s been working toward for the last two years as a student in College Possible and AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination.)
“I had no clue what college was before College Possible and AVID. I can’t necessarily ask my family for information about it, but they’re also willing to learn with me. These programs have not only been teaching me about the college process, but also my family,” says Xavier.
An aspiring civil rights lawyer, Xavier plans to dive deeper into public policy, poli-sci and pre-law during his time in college. Reed’s small class ratios, socratic seminar-style classes and emphasis on hands-on learning will be the most beneficial for his career, says Xavier.
Above all, he intends to continue speaking up for what he believes in. If there’s one message Xavier hopes readers take from this article, it’s that meaningful change is driven by those directly affected in our communities, even if their voices are often overlooked.
“I can’t emphasize how important it is that youth are at the center of decision-making. What I see is that youth have something to say even when they don’t know how to say it,” says Xavier. “The process of saying something and getting it out there is what makes an impact. It’s not always about what they say, it’s about how they make you feel. Those feelings can be transferred whether someone is saying something articulate or not.”
