Every morning last fall before school, Daja White waited for her friend Aamir Griffin at the bus stop on the corner of Foch and Guy R. Brewer Boulevards in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens. They boarded the Q111 and rode past a mural of a Buddhist monk holding a placard with red lettering: GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN.
When they reached Jamaica Avenue, they transferred to the Q30 and took it to Benjamin N. Cardozo High in Bayside, where they were freshmen, seven miles and an hourlong trek from home. Aamir had deep-set dimples and a broad grin; Daja’s wide smile showcased pink bands on her braces.