Activism | January 31st, 2025

FAMU Students Take Action to Support Families Displaced by LA Wildfires

By: Iyore Iyamu | Staff Writer

When wildfires struck Los Angeles in early October, many Florida A&M University students from the area watched in helplessness as their hometowns burned. With their families evacuated and homes destroyed, they were left waiting for updates from afar.

FAMU Students Watch as Wildfires Devastate Their Hometowns

Nyla Cartwright, a FAMU student from Pasadena, California shared that it was difficult for her to focus on school during the wildfires. 

“It was impossible to focus on school,” Cartwright said. “I’d be sitting in class, but all I could think about was whether my family would have a home to return to.”

The fires destroyed more than 1,300 homes and structures, forcing nearly 200,000 people to evacuate. While celebrities like LeBron James and Paris Hilton made headlines for their evacuations, the hardest-hit communities—working-class Black and brown neighborhoods—were often overlooked in the national conversation. Many families in these areas lacked the resources to rebuild.

Cartwright’s neighborhood in Pasadena was among those burned. Though her home was spared, many around her were not so fortunate.

“My brother’s school burned down,” she said. “He has to relocate now. So many people lost everything and have no way to start over.” 

Queen in You Steps Up to Raise Money for Fire Relief

Watching from a distance was unbearable. Feeling frustrated by the lack of support for those most affected, Cartwright and others decided to take action. Queen in You, a student-led organization on FAMU’s campus and Cartwright, worked to raise money for those families that had lost their homes.

Makiya Heard, vice president of Queen in You, had a personal connection to the disaster. Her sister, a merchandiser in downtown Los Angeles, was forced to evacuate due to hazardous air quality.

“She would FaceTime us and show us her window—you couldn’t see anything,” Heard said. “It was just red and gray, filled with smoke. People were scared. It was hard for her to even get groceries. She has a dog, and she didn’t want to take him outside.”

Determined to make a difference, Queen in You organized a fundraiser, selling plates of food and desserts, with all proceeds going toward fire relief. Through their efforts, the group raised enough to donate $100 to three families in need

“It was only our second year, and in a way, we were still learning as we did it,” Heard said. “People were donating just because they knew somebody in LA that was affected. Others just because they wanted to help.” 

The group focused on families who were close to reaching their fundraising goals, providing an extra boost to help them succeed.

“Fundraising for a cause like this is different,” Heard said. “It’s not just about the job of raising money. It’s about making people understand why this matters. Social media can desensitize people to disasters like this, so we had to show the real impact.”

Isaiah Harrington Captures the Reality of Destruction and Recovery

While students in Tallahassee worked to raise money, one of their own returned to Los Angeles to document the devastation firsthand. Isaiah Harrington, a FAMU student and photographer, went home to capture images of the destruction and the slow recovery process.

“There’s something about seeing it with your own eyes that makes it more real,” Harrington said. “I wanted to go there, to see for myself and also tell some of the stories that aren’t always being told.” 

Through his lens, Harrington captured entire neighborhoods reduced to ash, families digging through rubble for anything they could salvage, and a community struggling to recover. His photos were a stark reminder that while the news cycle moves on, the people affected by the fires continue to live with the consequences.

Now that the fires are contained, efforts have turned to rebuilding. But for many families, the road ahead is still uncertain: Some remain displaced, others battle complicated insurance claims, and many are trying to regain a sense of normalcy.

From afar, Cartwright says, those feelings of helplessness are even more acute. 

“I wish I could be there to help,” she said. “But if this is all I can do from here, I’ll keep going.”

Recovery efforts continue as communities face additional challenges, including rainstorms that have worsened conditions in some areas. However, those setbacks strengthened their resolve to do what they could for students like Cartwright, Heard, and Harrington.

“That experience showed me that student activism can make a difference,” Heard said. “People say our campus feels divided sometimes, but when it comes to something like this- something bigger than us—we come together.”

As Cartwright reflects on the power of their collective efforts, she adds, “If we can help one person, that’s one more family that doesn’t have to go through this alone.”