Education

Message to my next president: Decency is our starting point

Message to my next president: Decency is our starting point

Dear future president, My golden West Coast is burning. I could barely see the sun for days. COVID-19 has skewered America, exacerbated by failures in our healthcare system. As I write this, congressional stimulus talks are at an impasse, a blow to the lives of...

Message to my next president: Listen to the youth

Message to my next president: Listen to the youth

Dear future president,  It seems that the world is in trouble. Temperatures are rising, along with ocean levels, wildfires scorch drylands and we face a pandemic that’s pushed us into lockdown. The whole world looks like a mess to me.    According to scientists, we...

Message to my next president: De-politicize my existence

Message to my next president: De-politicize my existence

Dear future president,  How much longer will my existence be a controversy? I am an immigrant's daughter. I am a girl. And my entire life, I have seen my basic, unalienable human rights become the center of debates. Whether it is over my family members being allowed...

Message to my next president: Treat people with kindness

Message to my next president: Treat people with kindness

Dear future president, Please stay away from unnecessary hate toward people from outside countries. Educate our society on people from all backgrounds and identities. Stress the importance of diversity and inclusion within our society. Strip the inaccurate and racist...

Message to my next president: Who have you sworn to protect?

Message to my next president: Who have you sworn to protect?

Dear future president, In my opinion, one of the trademarks of being a good leader is the ability to look out for others. This requires enormous self-sacrifice, of course, but also compassion. It requires the desire to help, and to actively protect others.  Most...

Message to my next president: Fight for all survivors

Message to my next president: Fight for all survivors

Dear future president,  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 1 in 5 of my female classmates will be sexually assaulted in their lifetimes. Most of these assaults will happen within the next few years, as the U.S. Department of Justice...