Zilala Mamat’s family moved to the United States from China when she was two years old. Her extended family would visit her in the U.S. every summer. But as China began a program of genocide against the Uyghur people, her extended family were no longer able to leave China to visit the U.S. beginning in 2018.

“I’ve experienced the difficulties and challenges of having my own family members being taken away to concentration camps, with some even passing away or disappearing under mysterious circumstances. My grandfather and two of my uncles were detained by the Chinese government simply because they knew my family and knew we had moved to the United States,” said Zilala.

Because of this, Zilala took a keen interest in bringing awareness of the Uyghur genocide to her community. Northern Virginia has a large Uyghur population and during her freshman year, Zilala organized and led an optional assembly during school to educate students. She hand-animated a seven-minute video that she played for the assembly so that students would be more engaged. More than 100 students attended. “Students were shocked to learn that in this day and age, people were being sent to concentration camps in other parts of the world,” Zilala said. She plans another optional assembly on this topic during the spring of 2022.

During her sophomore year, Zilala founded and is president of HERO (Human Equal Rights Organization), a human rights club at Chantilly High School that promotes activism and education on human rights issues. The club has covered a variety of issues during their bi-weekly meetings, including the Yemeni crisis, anti-Asian hate, and topics surrounding healthcare.

Outside of school, Zilala founded a non-profit, United Uyghur Youth (UUY), by launching a community funding campaign. The non-profit aims to spread awareness about the Uyghur human rights crisis, preserving Uyghur culture and empowering Uyghur youth. More than 100 people have signed up as members so far, and membership has expanded outside of the Washington, DC area. She has organized several demonstrations and protests about human rights abuses like the Hong Kong extradition bill and the Syrian crisis. And she has also organized and raised more than $1,500 for UUY through a T-shirt campaign to fund future demonstrations and protests. Find out more about UUY on their webpage and their Instagram page.

Zilala also regularly writes articles for Kids Inspire Difference, a non-profit organization that brings attention to social justice issues, and she has interned for the Uyghur American Association during the summer.

School counselor Sarah Snyder said, “Zilala is a leader who is responsible, collaborative, empathetic, active, and an advocate. As China developed more restrictive policies, and Zilala’s family has been unable to communicate with the family they left behind, Zilala naturally became a human rights activist and plans to pursue this path in the future.”