Coming up next on NewsDepth.

A teen aims to become the youngest state representative in his state's history.

We learn about civil rights icon Reverend Jesse Jackson.

We also learn about Amanda Wicker, a black fashion designer from Ohio.

And Lunar New Year celebrations light up Chinese communities throughout the country.

NewsDepth is now.

Young people are increasingly taking an active role in politics, using their voices and platforms to advocate for the issues that they care most about.

Hello everyone.

I'm Gabriel Kramer, thank you for joining us.

Aiden Hamilton, an 18 year old student finishing high school in Washington State, is running for a state representative in Washington's 24th district.

A state representative is an elected official who serves a specific district in their state legislature, working to propose debate an enact state laws.

If elected, Aiden would be the youngest legislator in Washington State history.

Reporter Eric Wilkinson spoke to Aiden about how his upbringing shaped his political views.

As he sits down where he's finishing high school at Seaview Online Academy.

Aiden Hamilton embraces his unconventional underpinnings.

I'm not a normal student.

I'm not a normal candidate.

And so I would almost say that normal rules don't apply.

Hamilton is running for state representative in the 24th district on the Olympic Peninsula, currently 18 years and two months.

He'd be the youngest person ever elected in Olympia.

A child of the pandemic generation, Hamilton says, he understands the concerns of both young and old.

I'm worried about people like my grandmother and even people like my peers.

We can't keep up with the cost of living.

Despite his political inexperience, Hamilton says real life experience is what propels him.

His father suffered a serious health problem that left him out of work for a year and depleted the family's savings.

Inflation has since forced them to move in with relatives to make ends meet.

Hamilton says he wants to keep families together.

I don't want to have to leave this place just to be able to, afford, to live.

Along with his struggling family, Hamilton says two years of pandemic era learning loss shaped his politics.

Not one legislator can look a student in the eyes in Olympia and say, I know what it's like to lose two years of my education to a pandemic.

The pandemic turned Hamilton toward conservatism.

He believes one way to beat learning loss is school choice.

Hamilton is running as a Republican against the Democrat incumbent, about 60 years his senior.

He hopes a different generation and a different perspective will bring a better future.

Great job getting involved in your state, Aiden.

If you think politics is only for grown ups, young voters today are proving otherwise.

In North Carolina, college students in Guilford County took to the streets last week to protest a ruling about elections.

They reacted after a federal judge ruling meant there won't be early voting polling sites on campus.

No early voting on campus could make it more difficult for students to show up to the polls due to transportation challenges or their schedule.

Bethany Cates spoke with the students.

This is was democracy looks like!

This is what democracy looks like!

Access delayed is not access denied.

Take it or not.

We're still going to show up and vote.

After deliberation with both county and the state Board of Elections, college students in Guilford County are learning they will not have early voting polling sites on campus.

60 North Carolina A&T students went to Raleigh to make their case.

And they say this is what they were told.

Students at A&T don't actually vote.

They only show up when we take something away.

So we here to show them that we actually do vote on the first day that primaries begin.

Students argued this violated the 26th amendment by targeting voting sites used predominantly by college students.

While the defendants claim they have never located early voting sites at N-C-A&T or U-N-C-G for midterm cycles, and therefore the decision to not do so is justified by long standing practice.

A source tells W-X-I-I for further clarification, for every election, there is a new early voting plan, and the board is not bound by past plans.

And it was also added that historically, there have been more sites used in presidential cycles than midterms.

And while the judge denied a motion for temporary preliminary injunction, students feel like now they have to get creative.

Not everyone has access to cars, so we have to carpool.

Uber.

Not everyone comes to A&T for four years and leaves.

We come and we stay here.

This is our community now.

Thank you, Bethany.

Today's first couple of stories inspired our Write-To-Us for the week: Why is it important for young people to be politically active?

Students, you can use our inbox form online to share your opinion on the power of young people in our country.

On our last episode, NewsDepth intern Olivia Stein took us to her hometown of Mount Vernon to meet Mayor Matthew Starr.

Matthew Starr explained to us that his job as mayor is to maintain and improve his city.

So we wanted to know what you would do if you were mayor of your city.

Let's see what you had to say by opening our inbox.

A fifth grader from Hillsdale Local Schools in Haysville said: In my city I would like to create a text to send out to let people know when they are working on the roads and things that we need to know.

That would be very helpful.

A fourth grader from Strongsville City Schools in Strongsville wrote: I would add more recycling to parks and picnic places so people won't litter.

I would also plant more trees around the city to help the environment.

A great way to keep our environment healthy while in office.

Great job!

A fourth grader from Little Miami schools in Maineville wrote: If I were mayor, I would build homes for everyone who needs one and give them food and water.

I would also build schools for everyone who needs to go to school.

Great ideas.

A sixth grader from Sandusky Central Catholic School in Sandusky said: If I was mayor, I could help with enforcing the laws better and protect all people with new laws.

Great plans.

Thank you so much.

A seventh grader from Deer Park Middle School in Deer Park said: I would make sure all the water was clean and make it so kids only have three days of school.

Ambitious, but I like it.

Thank you all for writing.

I can tell you all really care about where you live.

Now let's meet another mayor in Nevada making state history.

Pamela Goynes-Brown comes from a history-making family.

Now she's carrying on that tradition as the first black mayor in Nevada.

The mayor spoke to reporter Sophia Bruinsma about her lineage and how it led her to City Hall.

Mayor Pamela Goynes-Brown's family home still stands in North Las Vegas, a place she says grounded her long before she entered City Hall.

It still is our family home.

In 2022 Goynes-Brown was elected mayor, becoming the first African-American mayor in Nevada history.

It's still surreal, even till today.

Public service ran in the family.

They both started off as teachers and they went into administration.

And then my dad branched off into politics.

Especially through her father, Theron Goynes, an Air Force veteran who went on to win seats on council, becoming the first African American Pro Tem in the state.

And so that was pretty amazing at the time, because you didn't have very many people of color in those roles.

Goynes-Brown followed in her father's footsteps, working as an educator for 35 years before becoming the mayor.

I am honored, grateful, blessed.

You know that, the citizens of North Las Vegas put their faith and their trust in me, but it's just to say, you know, I'm the first and I do not want to be the last.

Her father lived in this home until he passed away last year, but she says he was still alive to see her achievements.

And then he was there at my swearing in ceremony, and I had the Bible, and I was holding his other hand.

And I'm like, we got this.

We're in this together.

We're making history.

Goynes-Brown says inspiring young women to go for leadership positions is one of her top priorities as mayor.

From a mayor making history in Nevada, we turn to the life of a leader whose vision and determination paved the way for countless others to rise in activism.

Reverend Jesse Jackson, the influential civil rights leader, died last week at 84.

Jackson was a prominent figure in a civil rights movement of the 1960s, working closely with Dr.

Martin Luther King Jr., he helped lead major campaigns for racial justice, voting rights, and economic equality.

Jackson also made history with his presidential runs.

In 1984 and 1988, becoming the first black candidate to be a serious national contender.

Karin Caife reports from Washington.

Keep hope alive!

Keep hope alive!

The Reverend Jesse Jackson, a protege of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., who became a towering civil rights leader himself, has died at age 84.

Make no mistake about it, Jesse Jackson was unique in American history, and I hope that his legacy lives on.

A new generation of Americans who might draw from that energy.

Jackson's passing -- mourned Tuesday by those who worked closely with him - - He never stopped.

I once said to him, you already in history, you've gotten all the honors.

Why do you keep going?

He said, I never learned how to retire.

And by those -- inspired by him.

He told us to get involved!

To to be involved with helping the next person, being an example for the next person.

More than two decades before Barack Obama was elected the first black president of the United States.

Jackson made white House bids in 1984 and 1988.

We must come together.

And challenged Democrats to expand and reshape the party.

He shifted the party and shifted the rules of the party to bring more people in.

How many people owe their political lives to what Jesse Jackson did?

He never just ran for himself.

In a statement, the NAACP called Jackson - quote - "A lifelong soldier for justice."

202 00:10:04,570 --> 00:10:05,338 Thank you Karin.

Among those fondly remembering the late Reverend Jesse Jackson is a Chicago barber who says he cut his hair for the last time a few weeks ago.

Noel Brennan spoke with him.

207 00:10:17,550 --> 00:10:20,553 The old Clippers passed down to Larry Roberts Jr.

Very significant, very significant.

First belonged to a barber who cut the hair of superstars.

Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen!

It's the clients who make the Clippers special.

These same Clippers I used to service Reverend Jesse Jackson.

A barber can get close to the people who sit in his chair.

Larry's learned that over the decades, and his students learn it, too.

At Larry's Barber colleges.

They sit in this chair.

We're everything to them.

They have to entrust in us in their space with razors, with color, with relaxer, with clippers in our hair, right?

They have to entrust this.

A few weeks ago, Larry says Reverend Jackson and his family entrusted him.

Let me see.

Scroll back through the haircuts.

This is the one that I posted when I was cutting his hair at his house.

He says he cut the Reverend's hair a few times in the last year, but this was the last.

It was kind of emotional, but I think that I kept my cool.

He kept his cool and cracked some jokes to put the whole family at ease.

So, Mother Jackson, you know, I told her.

I said, I'm going to keep hope alive in the back of his head, you know?

And she said, and you ain't going to be alive, to keep hope alive, right?

Larry finished the cut and remembers saying goodbye.

Felt different.

He grabbed my hand real tight, as he always did, and I pretty much hugged him, you know, kissed him on the top of his head and just told him, I love you.

You know I love you, Reverend Jackson.

He holds on to those special clippers and the memory of a special client.

Definitely an honor that I was able to give him his last haircut.

Thank you Noel.

Now, to a city where black style remains a defining part of its identity.

Fashion trends are constantly changing.

But in Detroit, there's one accessory that's transcended generations.

Hats.

From officials to celebrities to everyday Detroiters.

Hats have been an important part of the city style.

Denetrios Sanders has more.

You can't really look at Detroit history without hats.

At the corner of Gratiot and Bessemore, there's a store with an old school feel.

You can kind of just sense in when you walk into the building.

But make no mistake, the items inside have stood the test of time.

One thing that has always stood is a well-dressed man or a well-dressed couple at that.

Hats Galore and More was first opened in 1993 by Robert Yeargin, and since 2021 has been owned by his son Ryan and great-nephew Dorien Corbett.

My mom worked here.

My grandpa, you know, would help out when he could with his brother, running the store.

So it's something that's very important to me.

Great for any special occasions.

Last minute occasions.

The family-owned business offering lots of classic headwear, from Kangol hats to fedoras.

And many of the looks have become synonymous with the Motor City.

He said, 'Man, you're always dressed.'

I said, well, I said, 'Where are you from?'

He said, 'I'm from New York.'

I said, 'Well, I'm from Detroit.'

Roosevelt Barnes says growing up, his father and uncles always wore a hat.

Since then, they've become a mainstay in his wardrobe.

You only got one chance to make a first impression.

And how you dress will be how you are addressed.

And he's far from the only one who has come to love the fashion statement.

If you go back to the old Tiger ball games and all that, everybody wore a suit, a hat, everything was dressed up.

Detroit's got style.

Although many have worn hats for years, Hats Galore and More have even seen new people coming through their doors.

Who've never worn a day in their lives, but they're interested, they want to branch out.

And I'm told the headwear will be here to stay for a very long time.

The transcend time, as long as you take care of it and it's well maintained, it will last you a lifetime.

Now, if you want to check out the shop for yourself, Hats Galore and More is open six days a week.

Love that story.

Thank you Demetrios.

Wearing a favorite outfit can be a good way to feel confident, but sometimes you got to try some new styles, right?

Find that new favorite outfit.

That's what fashion designer Amanda Wicker is all about.

She designed clothes that made people feel their very best and then encouraged others to do the same.

Ideastream Public Media's Carrie Wise has a look back at Amanda Walker's life in this week's Sketchbook.

Check it out!

When Amanda Wicker moved to Cleveland nearly a century ago, she put her education to work.

Having studied teaching and sewing.

She started her own business out of her home, training others in dressmaking.

She's launching this business in basically, what is the era of the Great Depression.

That's when her business is taking off.

She started out with a business in her home with, you know, a single client teaching them how to sew and turned it into this huge school that taught teenagers, adults.

She taught, you know, high fashion design, couture techniques.

But also, if you wanted to be trained in garment industry factory work, she could train you on machines that way, too.

Wicker moved her business out of her home and established the school at East 89th Street and Cedar Avenue in Cleveland's Fairfax neighborhood.

For decades, Wicker celebrated Cleveland's black fashion scene with annual shows.

The large scale events featured models wearing the latest designs, live entertainment, and scholarship awards for students.

She called her fashion shows The Book of Gold and you get a program with a gold cover.

And it was, sort of part graduation ceremony for students and then part, just a way for locals to display their work, because the fashion shows were kind of a mix of student work.

Amanda Wicker work.

But also, they would bring in local milliners to showcase their hats on the models.

Wicker designed clothes throughout her life, from wedding dresses to suits and eveningwear.

More than a dozen of those creations, as well as her photograph collection, were donated by her niece to the Western Reserve Historical Society.

I think, like playful is a good word for her style.

So fun, a little bit of sparkle sometimes, fun silhouette.

Wicker also had a talent for helping the community look its best.

She was an active member of Antioch Baptist Church and the Cleveland NAACP.

She taught her trade for more than 50 years, until selling her school and retiring in the late 1970s.

I think a lot of people don't necessarily think that teaching someone sewing is a form of activism, but it can give you a skill to become something different.

It can help support a community.

The freedom of expression, I would have to say associated with fashion design and dressmaking.

I think that's something that black women in particular came to appreciate in the years following the end of the Civil War, and certainly something that, Amanda Wicker was the expert on.

And she taught other people to express themselves in excellent ways.

Special thanks to Carrie Wise from the Ideastream Arts team for sharing that Sketchbook with us.

Speaking of cultural celebrations, the Lunar New Year kicked off last Tuesday, and celebrations wrap up with the Lantern Festival on March 3rd.

Unlike the solar calendar, which starts on January 1st, this Asian holiday isn't tied to a fixed date.

Instead, it follows the moon, beginning with the first new moon of the Lunar New Year.

2026 is the year of the horse.

The Lunar New Year is widely considered the most important event of the entire year in China and Chinese communities around the world.

Celebrations vary depending on the country or region, but there are a few common traditions.

Some of them include a big dinner with family cash gifts and red envelopes for kids, and deep cleaning the home to get rid of bad luck from the past year.

The horse is the seventh of 12 Chinese zodiac signs represented by animals and the Lunar New Year calendar cycle.

Your zodiac sign is determined by your birth year, and each animal is often linked to a set of character traits.

The horse symbolizes independence, energy, and moving towards the future.

Now, we'd like to invite you to participate in our Lunar New Year celebration.

Research the Chinese zodiac signs and tell us which animal is assigned to the year that you were born.

Pay special attention to your birthday, not just the year.

Because as we just learned, the Lunar New Year is different from the calendar year.

And extra points if you learn what character traits are associated with your animal.

Slide over to our poll page to vote.

Are you a rat, an ox, a tiger, a rabbit, a dragon, a snake, a horse, a goat, a monkey, like me, a rooster, a dog or a pig.

On our last episode, we visited a school in North Dakota that switched to a four day workweek, and we wanted to hear what you thought.

Should schools switch to a four day workweek?

Check out these results.

98% of you say yes because it would improve your mental health.

And only 2% of you think it might be more stressful to make the switch.

Personally, I wouldn't mind one fewer workday each week.

Thank you all for voting.

Now let's get back to the Lunar New Year celebrations in Seattle's Little Saigon neighborhood, firecrackers, drums, and lion dancing.

Welcomed the year of the horse.

The festivities brought big crowds and a much needed economic lift for businesses in the Chinatown International District, where sales have surged.

As Brady Wakayama reports, the community is welcoming a celebration of culture, joy and prosperity.

An explosion of brightness and hope that won't be silenced.

This line of firecrackers represents a red carpet for this community stepping into New Year.

Scaring away the evil that we brought from last year to make room for the fortune of the New Year.

Seattle's Mak Fai Kung Fu Lion Dance Troupe perform for this big crowd.

Drumming up fortune outside of Lam's Seafood Asian market in Little Saigon.

2026 is the year the Fire horse expected to be fueled with bold and passionate actions.

It's going to be a great year in terms of career as well as relationships.

If you think about fire, it's it's bright, right?

And it also spreads.

But you want to make sure you direct those flames in the right direction.

Don't burn yourself out.

So far that flame's ignited business in the Chinatown International District.

It is not just a cultural gathering.

It's also an economic driver for our businesses in the neighborhood.

From tough pandemic years to a double boost, Lunar New Year and a Seahawks Super Bowl win has sales soaring.

There have been some days where they've seen probably about two Fridays worth of sales in one day.

So for the businesses here, a lot of the legacy owned businesses, they need that foot traffic just to, to get through the next month.

More festivities are still to come.

Celebrating tradition, community and new beginnings.

Lunar New Year to me is it's just happiness.

Happiness.

Special thanks to my good friend Brady.

We've covered a lot today, but before we run out of time, I have to make sure we give a shout out to our A-Plus Award Winners for the week.

Whenever I drive around our great state, I'm always impressed by how complex the farms are here.

The farmers have to be experts in all kinds of things like science, math, business, weather, and technology.

And that isn't even considering that they need to know how to raise crops and care for livestock.

Recently we caught up with a few students from Waterford High School who are members of the Future Farmers of America and recently won top honors in advanced parliamentary procedure, which earned them this week's A-Plus Award.

Students participating in parliamentary procedure competitions are evaluated on their ability to conduct an orderly and efficient meeting using parliamentary procedure.

I'm sure your parents and teachers can tell you how important it is to have an efficient meeting.

The team from Waterford earned a gold rating and advanced to the state championship for the 18th time in the last 22 years.

That's a remarkable run of excellence, but these students do more than just run meetings.

Lanee, who is a senior, told us that she gets to show live stock through FFA.

Her specialty is pigs.

She told us that she gets assessed and how she handles the animals and how they respond to her.

She could not be more grateful for the skills and opportunities FFA has provided to her.

Taylor, who is a junior, told us that she focuses a lot of her work on studying soil.

She told us that not all soil is equal, and just because a type of soil is good for planting crops, it may not be good for building on.

I never knew that.

Kaylie does a lot of work with soil types, and she told us that her experiences with FFA have helped her become a strong public speaker.

That's a great skill to have, and even though I speak to you every week, I still get nervous.

Taylor told us that she really enjoys participating in all of the different competitions and learning new things.

She said that she really learned how to adapt to challenges because of the interesting things she's done in FFA.

Allison added that she really appreciates the team atmosphere in the club and that everyone has been very supportive.

Mckenzi told us that the team atmosphere and the unique challenges really allow her to test for limits and take on new responsibilities.

This week's A-Plus Award goes to the Waterford Future Farmers of America Chapter's Advance Parliamentary Procedure team for their excellent performance and facing new challenges.

Keep up the great work!

Okay, I think we have just enough time to check in on Newshound.

It's time for this week's Petting Zoo.

What's up Newshound.

We have a viewer question for you.

What is your favorite snack?

Newshound says his favorite snack right now is peanut butter bones.

He even does a little dance every time he gets one.

Okay, okay.

We should get back to work.

What animal story do you have for us this week?

Awesome!

It's a story about a veteran who was reunited with a stray cat she took care of overseas.

Gigi became a staple in Stroud's life in Israel.

Taking the cat to her apartment, with her to work.

They spent almost every second with each other.

As she looked into it, Stroud came across SPCA International's Patriot Pets Program.

It's helped rescue over 1600 dogs and cats to reunite with service members.

To see Gigi get comfortable in her new home.

Click the Petting Zoo thumbnail at the bottom of this episode page.

Great story as always, Newshound!

You definitely earned that peanut butter bone.

Well, that wraps up today's show.

Join us next week for more news and more stories.

Until then, you can keep the conversation going because we always like to hear from you, and there are plenty of ways for you to stay in touch with us.

You can write to us.

We're at 1375 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio.

Our zip code here is 44115.

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Plus, you can catch all of our special segments on YouTube.

Hit subscribe if you're old enough so you don't miss out on any of our new videos.

Thank you for joining us.

I'm Gabriel Kramer.

See you next week.

NewsDepth is made possible by a grant from the Martha Holden Jennings Foundation.