001is he gonna change the lights good evening everyone my name is Autumn Brown and I will be your mistress of Ceremonies tonight thank you so much a round of applause and all I said was my name this is a good start I am recently retired from teaching drama 25 years at Brookhurst Junior High School and now that I'm retired I can pursue my two favorite passions one my love of theater and second my love of not getting up to an alarm clock every day everyone to the second annual auhsd soapbox speak finals to get us started I'd like to introduce our student ambassador who will lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance Ari Cardenas [Applause] [Music] [Applause] please rise to your right hand over your heart ready begin I pledge allegiance to the flag of
002the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God individual liberty and justice for all thank you thank you this competition provides our students a voice to share their issues that are important to them under the guidance of our superintendent Michael matsuda the Anaheim Union High School District is a recognized leader both Statewide and nationally for its innovative work in the area of Civic engagement we have more designated California democracy schools in our district than any other District in the state of California thank you so to share a few words on that issue and more please welcome our assistant superintendent of Educational Services Jaren freed om thank you autumn well good evening everyone happy Thursday right well I am excited to be here with all of you tonight
003uh this is always one of the events that I look forward to most and I know Miss Brown just celebrated our 17 out of the 20 schools that are California tomorrow schools but we found out today we now have an 18th School I want to congratulate Mr Lara is in the house and our friends at Gilbert High School our newest California democracy school and just so you know the other we have two more schools that are being visited within the next uh I think week or two so our hope is that we'll have our our 19th and our 20th California school within a few weeks now tonight before we begin I want to acknowledge a few special guests that are with us this evening I know our superintendent is out there somewhere Mr Michael mansooty
004is out there so thank you Mike for being here we also have our board president Brian O'Neal who is here with us and I think our trustee Guerrero will be here shortly she's also planning to be here as well you know as a district I love the fact that we're able to create spaces for our students to create and have these kinds of experiences where they can bring in as Adam said the issues that they care about in the classroom where our teachers our amazing teachers find ways to connect it to their content and allow students of space to really Elevate their voice in our district we really believe in elevating our students voice where they can find out who they are what they believe in and how they fit in this world we also
005want to empower them and equip them with the skills that are to be necessary to navigate through what life throws their way we call those the five C's and we also want to connect again to the content the technical skills the hard skills you might see in a classroom when you look at those three things together that is what really generates the the type of student that we want to create so that way they can create the better world that we live in our vision to create a better world through the unlimited you now when you see the soapbox speeches that are happy tonight I want you to recognize the sophistication our students and our teachers had to put in place to make that happen right you think about the 5 you're going to see
006them in action tonight now as they come up here just know they're gonna be talking about very different topics that are very personal to them we ask that when you listen you listen with an open mind and appreciate the sophistication and the research and the hard work they put in to their soapbox beaches so with that I do want to do a few quick awesome acknowledgments I want to make sure we recognize the amazing teachers that are here that created the space for our students to actually do the soapbox speeches in their classroom so thank you teachers we have a few soapbox coaches that have been helping our students as well uh Bijan kazroni where are you here you go the lights are really bright but it is hard we also have Autumn Brown who's
007been helping our students as well and then I know he's not here but I want to acknowledge Kent canals he is also a retired teacher who's done a lot of great work in this area and he has spent time coaching our students and our staff as well so thank you Ken please make sure I send him my best and then also take a moment to thank our judges for being here uh we'll introduce him at the end but thank you for being here to watch observe in in the value of our students as they perform tonight and they're still Fox beaches with that I'm going to turn back over to AutoZone thank you so much enjoy your evening well as Dr Fried said joining us tonight are an amazing panel of Judges who give have
008the challenging job of trying to decide in each of our categories Junior High and high school the third second and first place finalists the winners so judges please introduce yourselves your name what is your role in our district and maybe a sentence or two about something you're passionate about an issue that's important to you our speakers have three minutes you have 30 seconds thank you good evening everyone my name is Diana fujimota I'm coordinator of professional learning I'm really excited to be here um and I think maybe something that I'm very passionate about is just being good stewards of our resources and you know making sure that we're using our resources wisely little things that we can do in our everyday routine that can add up to Big impacts in our world hi good evening
009my name is Katie Childers I serve as the math curriculum specialist here at the district prior to that I actually was a teacher here at Lawrence it's great to be home once a Saxon always a Saxon an issue that is near and dear to me would be human rights hi everyone my name is Regina Powers I am your District librarian and if you can guess what my issue would be it would be you know get rid of the phone and pick up a real book judges our judges are looking as our speakers present first is content is the issue clearly explained delivery body language facial expressions gestures structure and style is the speech organized does it interest the audience does It capture their attention and does the speaker offer any solutions do you know that
010a study was done many many years ago that asked people what are you afraid of and people answered things like moving and divorce spiders clowns the number one thing that people said they were afraid of was speaking in front of a group of people the number two thing people were afraid of was dying people would rather die than get up in front of a group and speak in front of an audience so we are our young people are to be applauded tonight for coming up and overcoming that fear they each have an issue that they want to share with us so to get us started let's give them a wild Round of Applause Just to give them some encouragement we will begin with our Junior High speakers then take a 10 minute break and then
011continue with our high school presenters so let us begin very pleased to introduce to you from Walker Junior High Rachel Choi [Applause] good evening my name is Rachel Choi 2020 Alone Together facing a Google pandemic our connections may have varied but we cannot know the fact that all of humanity went to the same covid-19 struggles the same set of worries the same panic over toilet paper and the need to wear protect the face mask now after quarantine the requirement burn Mass has been listed yes some still choose to wear it there are so many reasons for this however the most common is because of insecurities for some wearing masks have made them so insecure their own face that they refused to have their mask off in public even when they're starving or dying of heat
012oh she's a two out of 10 without a mask and maybe a six out of 10 with one you may ask why does a mask make a person more attractive it's because the world has evolved in America in this Western beauty standards noses seems small and Slimmer teeth feel perfect and eyes appear maker for people who have different cultures The Beauty Center is genetically impossible to fulfill everything revolves around Beauty being pretty or handsome your social image determines the level of acceptance and success in society and All-American beauty is a thin white woman with a high small nose and big blue eyes in fact South Korea is heavily influenced by these standards as reported by dream of Publishers 44 occurrinas use Caucasian models and local models do not often appear in global Brands ads in
013Korea this this sense an underlying message that Western faces are desired despite the fact that this ideal is usually genetically unattainable leading to Common surgical procedures in Korea appealing to Western Beauty Senate the most common being Rhino classes and double eyelid surgeries the definition beauty isn't limited to One race a world where all eye shapes Styles and bodies are beautiful a world where it's easier for a colored woman to look through catalogs and magazines and find someone they can relate to to find a deep understanding of themselves and embrace their culture because resting beauty standards create such unreachable expectations for diverse cultures societies should challenge the cultural center Beauty implies a reachable more inclusive one with the help of social media we can start by spreading awareness and increasing diverse representation in the media according
014to greater good a new report reveals that films or diverse characters actually make more money at the box office and when Oscars having a variety of beauty centers will eliminate a toxic mindset of beauty expectations and change our one-dimensional views of beauty expectation beauty is an important aspect to the human's everyday lives it's everywhere it's essential and when Beauty centers start to change the world we will be able to see in Shades of Gray no today I Rachel Choi won't let the beauty centers control me in fact I am my own standard of beauty thank you Rachel Rachel Rachel come on back just for a sec and everyone all our speakers will receive a trophy of participation but we are off to a great start judges let me know when you're ready for the next
015speaker next up from Orange view Junior High ER shalabi [Applause] picture in your head a mother cooking dinner smells of lamb rice and soup walk through the house children lay on deep red couches watching an old but functional TV when the youngest asks suddenly a bomb hits just blocks away the explosions go on for weeks as soldiers stormed the streets of their once quiet Town innocent lives are taken thousands are injured and many are forced to leave when I told you the pictures what country did you imagine most likely you thought of a horrible invasion of Ukraine but when I think of this I think of my homeland Palestine imagining my war-torn countries a no-brainer for me but for most it's basically unheard of why why is it that you could turn on the TV
016and you hear about Ukraine why is that I could ask a random person in this room and they would know the output of support for Ukraine is amazing but I can't help but think why not Palestine the occupation in Palestine causes fear death and suffering in 1947 Israel first started their occupation of Health which has lasted for more than 70 years in the first year alone more than 000 people were forced to leave their homes towns were quickly emptied and destroyed leaving no hope of return for these innocent families since 1947 this conflict has shown no signs of stopping and in fact in 2023 it only gets worse less than a month ago six people were killed in a raid of a refugee camp in February 11 people were killed in the city of Nevis
017that same day 100 people were Gravely wounded in a city called hot water homes are charred black windows are smashed and businesses were burned have you seen a single headline of these in the media in on news on Twitter on Instagram did you even know that all three of the examples that I gave to you just now happened in 2023 alone we are less than three months in why does nobody care in August of 2021 Israel started bombing process in the first few days alone 120 people died quarter of those people were children under 12 years old social media blew up hashtag free Palestine was chanting and people started talking about our struggle and I allowed myself to Hope I thought that this media attention would get help to those who need it I thought
018that whenever I told someone I was from Palestine I wouldn't be met with what's that but just as soon as everyone's Side Care everything went our struggles are not a trend it is not some way for you to get popular nor will it disappear simply because you posted a hashtag not only is there a glaring absence Palestine in the media it seems as though we are hated that we are seen as uncivilized as violent one reporter on ITV News said now the unthinkable has happened and this isn't a third world developing Nation this is Europe the wording makes it seem like oh Europe is a pristine area with no savagery no violence but everywhere else it's to be uncom in conflict expected to kill each other expected for you to not know where your next
019meal will come from and this isn't the only recorder that thinks that white death is more tragic than air of death a reporter on the Sunday Telegraph said they seem so much like us that's why it's so surprising this is Europe yes the Ukrainian invasion is horrible the atrocities being committed left and right but I can't help but be jealous why does nobody care for us we need to make media know that all war is equally violent and equally destructive if we could remember the countless people who suffer on a daily basis who get killed on a daily basis then we could get help to those who need it please protest speak up make sure that we are as talked about as countries such as Ukraine if you want to post make sure you participate
020in long-term activism donate sign petitions but do not forget us do not forget that we exist that we are humans with dreams aspirations and lives and we are able to do this as once said we are all born with generosity kindness and a love for others in our we are all moved by Injustice and we are all inside human beings my name is Hayes I am proud to be Palestinian and even when the media goes silent I will not [Applause] next up from Lexington Junior High I'm very pleased to introduce Jacob Lee [Applause] Ariel Anderson is a student at Michigan State University who wants to be a surgeon after graduating college Eva Morales he's a fourth grade teacher at Rob Elementary School who loves running fighting and her family Valentino Marco zavaro is a hospital
021worker who hopes to return to the Philippines after retirement what did these people have in common they're that because the machines Michigan Texas and California their hopes love and pursuit of dreams have been robbed forever hello my name is Jacob Lee and I'm talking to you about the importance of gun control we we are about gun crimes and innocent deaths every day everywhere even in your neighborhood it is a persistent and advancing issue in our society costing nearly 35 million sharp federal state and local governments each day we should spend this waste money on Education Health Care and establishing better communities and working conditions so I'm going to Advocates claim that guns are mostly used for self-defense and personal security however One Federal study found that of the total number of violent crimes communication 2007
022and 2011 less than one percent victims protected themselves Visions fire on firearms this gives us no doubt that Firearms are rarely used in self-defense so now imagine imagine a world where Ariel Anderson Eva Morales and Valentino Marco zavara are still alive and were police officers don't have to train from our shootings 500 people a day die from Guns globally and at this rate at the end of this year we could reach over 182 000 people that six times the number of students in the Anaheim Union High School District gun crimes can happen anywhere and to anyone anyone you know anyone you admire anyone you maybe hate and anyone you love can be a victim in once your moments the majority of gun owners agree with common sense control such as the background check where mandatory
023waiting period after purchasing gone also a smartphone technology that uses Biometrics to identify contractual owners and prevent guns from being abused is in progress then what can we do contact your Congressman regarding gun legislation and you take unsafe to classes ultimately and most importantly what one thing you can do is to educate others about how significant gun control is in our society there's a saying which every time I hear motivates and encourages me if not me then who and it's not now then when this eventually brought me onto the stage and now I am strongly appealing to you to join me thank you [Applause] now from Sycamore Junior High please welcome Dulce Rodriguez [Applause] beep beep beep for the average person that is the sound of an alarm clock a sound that simply represents the
024start of a new day but for students that struggle with mental health that is the start of a daily struggle you struggle to get out of bed he struggled to get ready for school you struggle to have a productive day many students struggle with their mental health and the worst part about this is that many of these students deal with their mental health alone students who deal with mental health are not getting the help they need mental health among the youth is also on the rise to further demonstrate in an article titled teen mental health facts and statistics it mentions that cases of major depression among teens ages 16 and 17 have risen by an overwhelming 69 percent mental health among students is an important issue that needs to be addressed there have been times
025where I myself have struggled with my mental health in the moment I had to keep telling myself I was okay even though I knew I was not students who struggle with mental health are often viewed as being lazy or irresponsible for not trying their best in school but is it really their fault can you really blame them imagine having the mentality of each day waking up not knowing if you're going to get through the day imagine being worried or nervous the whole day not knowing if something bad is going to happen students who struggle with mental health are just trying to survive the day that is the only thing on their mind imagine a world where every student came to school ready to learn ready to socialize and ready to have a good day imagine
026a world where every student had a positive view of themselves and their and their environment imagine a world where every student is trying their best in school and as happy as can be this is how the world would look like if mental health was not a thing with the right resources we can help students overcome their battles with mental health the tools we have to work on this issue are the counselors here at school talking with the counselor might be scary at first but they're a great help when you need someone to talk to another resource we have are therapists therapists of great help when you when you need to let your emotions out in a positive way I need you to remind those affected by their mental health that they have helped for resources
027around them and that it's okay to reach out for help I need teachers to be more patient with students and take their feelings into consideration for those that are currently struggling with their Mental Health you can you can participate in activities that relax your mind and body such as joining Sports engaging in arts and crafts and joining Hobbies in the end if you are currently struggling with your mental health please remember you are not alone we are in this together thank you [Applause] good work don't say for the last three minutes she was the bravest person in the room [Applause] from Ball Junior High please welcome nylea Amos [Applause] hi my name is nylea and today I am talking to you about the n-word and racism in schools this is going to be uncomfortable but
028this has been a big issue at my school and other schools in Anaheim so we have to be brave and address it in 2022 a survey of 80 ball junior high students was conducted over 95 percent reported hearing the n-word multiple times on a daily basis using both a casual way and aggressively toward black students I was one of those students who had to go through this the mental and emotional tool this has taken on me is overwhelming I come home Angry disappointed and Confused literally over 400 years of horror abuse and segregation all packed into only one word and these kids will say it so casually do they even know what it means do you know how much pain is tied up with that word do you know how much hatred is in that
029word this is why I knew I needed to say something the n-word is not just a word used in rap music it's not a cool thing to say it is a word that encourages racism it can even lead to the killings of black people people who look like me my family my friends who I love people fail to realize that the mistreatment and Injustice of black people is closer to home than one realizes this caused unruly times upon black people but unless you're black you get the pleasure to turn a blind eye but in the U.S this is real time daily every second we breathe air this is our reality my reality other family's reality what has been done to address this issue and advisory our principal gave an announcement about how unacceptable racial slurs
030are being used on campus specifically the n-word after that anemone was sent out to all families on how they can educate their child against using racial slurs black people make up less than five percent of the student population in the Anaheim Union High School District even though we make up a small number we deserve to be respected and to feel safe when we come to school so my question to you is this what are you doing to amplify the voices of black students at your school what are you doing to protect black students thank you foreign [Music] [Applause] please welcome Sophia Morello from Brookhurst Junior High [Applause] [Music] [Applause] you're taught that doctors are heroes that are that provide consistent Equitable care for all patients after all they do take a Hippocratic Oath promising to
031do no harm however studies of racial bias in the medical system demonstrate that equal care is not guaranteed for all patients even though it should be today I want to talk to you about racism in the Healthcare System the reason that this is such a big issue is that is affecting millions of people worldwide seeking services from Cancer Care to prenatal care we can trace this issue back to the 1900s when it falls three called Eugenics claimed that black people's bodies were built differently than white people's bodies this Theory held that black people's lungs can take more damage that their skulls were smaller but their blood clotted more easily and that black people face pain less severely than white people this medical bias still exists today a 2016 study of the University of Virginia medical
032students revealed that as many as 40 percent still believe the myth that black people's skin is thicker and less sensitive than white people's skin but we must guarantee equal care for all patients a study of at four medical academic centers across the country physicist Physicians self-recorded no racial advice towards us by patients however after completing an implicit bias test those same healthcare workers showed significant bias believing that black people were less likely to comply with medical recommendations resulting in Better Care and Pain Management for white patients but we must guarantee equal care for all patients the tools we have to work on this are simple we need more doctors of color imagine a world where the percentage of black doctors is the same as the percentage of its black citizens according to the association of
033American medical colleges only four percent of U.S doctors are black while 13 of the U.S population identifies as black so let's start identifying those Medical those medical experts early programs such as the medical Cruise pathway between berkerson's event is a great start and also Avid a course that I have been imparted for the last two years helped 7th through 12th grade students with the rigorous coursework needed to to be in the medical field and also we need to invest in more scholarships for black students wanting to be in the medical profession and also as a country we need to provide more Equitable workspaces that build advancement opportunities for people of color but I also want you every person sitting down and standing up in this room right now to educate yourselves about this problem race
034in the healthcare system won't disappear overnight only with dedicated Collective and coordinated effort can we start to dismantle destructions of repression once we bring this issue into the public eye doctors will one day save as many black lives as white lies because we must guarantee equal care for all patients thank you [Applause] from Oxford Junior High please welcome Camilla tow [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] growing up observed how women and my family have ended their generations of pain and Trauma simply because they're Asian woman living in a white male-centered side my name is Camilla toe and in my traditional Asian household girls are taught to dismiss rude comments instead of standing upward ourselves unfortunately these stereotypes these values lead to stereotypes about how Asian women are invisible and submitted doormats in which these Asian women go
035on to disregard racist sling and towards their active or appearance in their day-to-day lives when the issue of casual racism is not addressed on the everyday level it can even escalate towards violence for example an elected Spa shooting of 2020 six Asian female employees were freely shot by a white gunman although the gunman claimed that his actions were not racially motivated but caused by sexual addiction the rising pattern of Asian hate crimes during the pandemic would prove otherwise to no one's a prize the gunman's actions were seemingly excused by the captain of the Sheriff's Office who asserted that the gunman was having a really bad day according to the New York Times throughout history the American government has been designed from the very beginning to school women of Asian descent oh [Applause] as Isabella Oishi
036stated in the did you know that the pitch art Act of 1875 restricted in Asian immigration on a second basis that Asian women were profiled as prostitutes and that the introduction of their sex work but during the moral Integrity of the American people as Isabella Oishi wrote In The Georgetown law review terms such as the military man evolved alongside emerging racist descriptions such as Lotus Flower and Dragon Lady which hypersexualized women of Asian descent fully to serve as an EcoBoost that feeds onto the white savior complex that possessed American military men at that time these present day and historical events demonstrate a long-standing problem deep-rooted in American society where most government officials generally dismiss racism towards people of color or sex them towards women if they make it a point to educate themselves on the
037ongoing history of anti-aging violence towards women this can lead way to challenge the Discrimination that Asian American women face daily yeah if to maintain this welcoming and inviting atmosphere for new generation of Asian girl controlling feel comfortable in their own skin I encourage all of you to start these open conversations with your family friends and loved ones so that girl not only of Asian descent but of all minority groups can start speaking up and making themselves feel more seen in a place that's tried so hard to make them feel invisible thank you foreign [Applause] Junior High please welcome Ella City Mohammed [Applause] [Music] hello I'm Alex Muhammad and I'm rocking that's usually how I introduce myself as an immigrant moving to America definitely caused some transatlantic shock to me where I'm from we don't have
038as much fast food as we do in America we don't have as much taxes to do in America and we definitely don't allow guns in my country A Guy Walks down the street with a knife he can get arrested here pretty much anyone can get their hands on a gun but hey who am I to judge I mean 12 kids do die every day in this country due to gun violence but this is a land of the free I mean CNN did report more than 600 mass shootings last year alone in this country but it's your second amendment I mean the CDC did announce the leading cause of death for teenagers is gun related injuries but but what you need a gun to protect yourself weapons are a part of your culture it's your right
039to bear arms and not my right to feel safe no wonder why the whole world stereotypes Americans is violent and you can't even blame them according to the Washington Post there are more than 393 million guns in the United States that's more guns than there are people in this country and yet some say it's not a problem let me put this into perspective for you in August 1997 cpsc conducted a recall on a very dangerous threat to children put their lives in danger so much so it was banned from the U.S the threat was a toy Kinder egg the very same year a 14 year old opened fire on a prayer group in his high school injuring and killing some of those teenagers the threat was a 22 LR pistol do you think that a
040toy can direct serves more of a threat to a child's life than a 22LR pistol ridiculous you want your little siblings to go to school excited for recess for their friends to eat lunch with their friends not to have to practice a safety drill in case a bad guy decides to show up to school one day in case their class becomes another story in the news as Senator Chris Murphy once said it is a choice to let it continue it is a choice to speak up it is a choice to educate yourself it is a choice to acknowledge that this is a massive problem we can stop this we cannot force gun laws we can stop protecting gun manufacturers we can create a culture of gun safety we can stop easy access these weapons but
041we have to act now 106 people are shot and killed in the U.S every day so think about it tomorrow be your mom your dad your sister your brother one of your friends classmates co-workers tomorrow could very well be you so if you're not thinking how can I fix this what can I do then you might as well be thinking which one of us is next thank you [Applause] our final Junior High speaker comes from South please welcome Caitlin Flores Rojas [Applause] [Music] women's rights what is women's rights many people may think of many different things when it comes to women's rights some people believe women should have rights others believe that they shouldn't hi my name is Caitlin Flores Rojas and I'm a student from South Junior High School I would like to come
042up here today to talk to you about women's rights and the importance of it it is so important to learn and spread awareness about this topic because not many people speak up about it I believe that women should have the right to vote speak their minds and do all of that but they don't mainly men are the ones who have the rights and women don't women's are the ones that have to struggle getting the rights to do stuff that they do we are still fighting to get our rights each and every day this isn't right and we have to put a stop to this nearly 2.4 billion women around the world don't have the same economic rights as men 2.4 billion I was in shock when I saw this number the amount of women that
043don't have the same economic rights as men is insane in Afghanistan there are many women out there that do not have the same rights as men as a matter of fact they treat them way differently than men they think men are superior up to here and women down here and that's not right women should be treated equally as men we all should be treated equally as men I believe that here us we live in the United States we have equal rights but other people in other countries they do not and I believe that we take our rights for granted because many people don't have the same rights as we do and I am very very thankful that I have my rights because I don't know what I would do without them so I believe that
044everyone should have equal rights I believe that we need to come together as a community we need to start petitions we need to vote for these women to get the rights because this isn't fair I strongly believe that everyone should have the right to speak their mind and have an open opinion but in many countries women don't have that option we need to do something to stop we cannot just sit back and let all of this happen we need to stand up for these women and help them out thank you for listening may I remind you you've been listening for the last half hour to seventh and 8th grade students [Applause] that was amazing we will take a 10-minute intermission where our Junior High speakers can relax our high school speakers can do a little
045stretching and some tongue twisters to get them ready to go and I'll see you back here in 10 minutes thank you take your seats for the second half of our amazing evening [Applause] all right welcome back everyone to our amazing evening second half showcasing our high school students so let's get started from Oxford High School please welcome Jade Orr [Applause] good evening everyone we have entered a new era of Civic engagement there has been a push to have children learn about it in schools but where did it start and what does that mean for where we are and where we are going by the end of the speech all will be answered Civic engagement is the action of participating in one's government and or community so first where did it start Civic engagement has been
046around for centuries and was started in Greece but for the best comparison to Modern Civic action we should look to the 1960s at the time we had the Civil Rights Movement the women's rights movement a gay rights movement and even an environmentalist movement to quote Democracy in America by Alexis de toccoville the first mass democracy for white men became a nation in which people of all colors and both genders could participate people were Banning together for something bigger than themselves however shortly after came the silent majority and while there were still protests and movements they were no longer as strong as they once were people were less inclined to go out and meet other people you know your neighbor seriously know them their names and family members because survey says you don't kids today are
047growing up in an era of technology and stranger danger they are being told that they cannot trust the people around them according to Pew and they're and their beliefs are only getting more extreme according to Pew Research Center gen Z have a stronger mistrust in the government however they are more tolerant on diverse issues like racial inequality and lgbtq plus they have these passions for change but no place to put them we have entered a new era of Civic engagement and we are doing nothing to cultivate it everyone is mad and we are doing nothing about it to quote Dr Holly Russo Gilman in her book the future of Civic engagement there has not been enough focus on creating structures models and opportunities for people to proactively engage in Civic action we need to create
048Community again we need to help students build those structures so that more and more people can participate in Civic action so back to the question do you know your neighbor if your answer is no go out and say hi go to their house and ask to borrow a cup of sugar like you see in those old TV shows meet someone new and get to know them if your answer is yes go and ask to take a walk with them maybe even bowling so you won't be alone because until we trust each other again we cannot expect to trust our government again [Applause] our next speaker is from Magnolia High School Mimi alcalot [Applause] everyone feels confident on their own home turf this is the explanation of an ancient Arabic proverb but what if we want
049to feel confident when we're not on our home turf when we're playing our away game greetings everyone my name is and I'll be delivering my speech catching confidence but what is confidence Psychology today defines it as a belief in oneself the conviction that one has the ability to meet life's challenges and to succeed well why should you care why put yourself through the discomfort kids health points out a lack of confidence can hold people back from reaching their full potential meaning their purpose their Drive their Joy 85 percent of Americans suffer from low self-esteem according to the online therapy site better help this may stem from experiences in early childhood or ingrained beliefs we have about ourselves so how do we go against the grain we've cemented in our minds first the National Health Service
050says to unearth routinely negative thoughts we have about ourselves and challenge them a common example I'm ugly to challenge this we can use daily affirmations to change our mindset instead we can say I feel ugly but I know I am gorgeous second be comfortable with being uncomfortable think of your comfort zone like a muscle you need to train it to make it bigger discomfort is the only path to change finally stop thinking that everyone around you is always looking at and judging you take this as a relief you're not the focal point of everyone's attention well how will you be confident in yourself if you can't even be yourself if you use your time to practice and expand on these three tips I guarantee you'll gain confidence you'll be scoring the winning points at your
051next away game thank you [Applause] she was the focal point for a few moments there next up is from Savannah High School Kier Keith [Applause] Anaheim known as the home of Disneyland Angels baseball team and Knott's Berry Farm stands as the second largest city in Orange County and one of the most attractive cities in California what people don't know is the major hidden problem that destroys house affordability and school quality in our Golden City hopefully you'll never have to face this question my neighborhood is nice but why do I have to move my name is Kirk Keith and I like to bring much needed awareness to the rising issue of gentrification in the city of Anaheim Bloomberg News defines gentrification as the territorial expansion of a wealthy community into a poor neighborhood raising prices and
052making it impossible for low-income residents to stay there by simply talking numbers the last U.S census reports that the median income for an individual in Anaheim was thirty thousand dollars thirteen percent of whom are living in poverty while the median household income was roughly 76 thousand dollars newer and more expensive housing is being constructed in economically disadvantaged areas of Anaheim all the time causing poor residents to leave because they simply can't afford to live here more examples of expensive Anaheim housing includes records obtained from the Anheim Planning Commission in 2020. 39 condo units were built between La Palma Avenue and Anaheim Boulevard in a working-class Latino Community where the average income was fifty thousand dollars do that buyers must have an annual income of over 100 000 to afford buying a unit in this new
053construction does this seem fair to you this phenomenon also negatively affects school districts and gentrified neighborhoods according to recent Stanford research when neighborhoods identify Local Schools tend to lose students the drop is rather small at three percent of enrollment and this trend is seen in the Anaheim Union High School District where a student population has decreased every year since 2017. innocent people like my best friend Isaac are true victims to gentrification in this city of Anaheim through all his entire life only his grandmother has had the ability to own a house in our city his father always gets close to buying a house he has to stick to a crowded apartment due to mortgage and interest that just keeps getting higher wisick lives with his dad his mother is on the verge of eviction due
054to ever increasing housing costs how is gentrification so unknown yet so brutal how do we prevent gentrification the solution is complicated however we could start with policies at the federal state and city levels provide financing for affordable housing additionally Urban Magna programs can be implemented in Anaheim which create guidelines for racial and income diversity if you are concerned about gentrification controlling your City contact your city council to find out how your home may be affected that way you'll never have to ask yourself my neighborhood is nice but why do I have to move thank you [Applause] next up from Gilbert High School I'm very pleased to introduce you to Caden Morgan [Applause] my family came to this country in the early 70s from Nicaragua for a better life but in the 40-something Years they've been
055here the United States has let them down my name is Kaden Morgan and I'm here to share my thoughts on why I believe this country is on its Journey towards its downfall for starters everything is more expensive now according to the U.S Energy Information Administration California gas prices in 2020 average three dollars and 13 cents per gallon compared to 5.40 in 2022 why well you can blame the war in Ukraine but as reported by Forbes that's not the only reason oil oil companies are unwilling to invest in New Wealth to see their prices decline their supply increase and their profits dwindle their greed is what we pay for at the pump secondly a recent poll from Yahoo finance recently concluded that 70 percent of people's income goes towards rents and other necessities to add on
056that back then in 1975 if you made 15 an hour you would be able to afford a home if you made that now you can barely afford to rent a studio apartment the current minimum wage does not allow us to live comfortably and living comfortably means keeping food on the table and a roof over our heads even if we are able to live comfortably we live in an epidemic of gun violence according to the gun violence archive from February 17th through 19th there were a record 10 mass shootings in a single weekend Across the Nation 10. I don't want to be another statistic even worse I don't want to worry about my children not coming home from school yet people do and that is the harsh reality we're all human and we're all equal yet
057how many lives do we need to lose or how many stories do we need to hear before something changes before this country stops repeating its mistakes here's the last point I'm going to make our mental health has hit a decline as well the CDC says suicide is the second lean cause of death in teenagers and young adults Across the Nation one in five U.S adults will experience a mental health crisis in a year with that number being one in six for our youth that's not good for those who have been not taught how to handle their emotions or they don't want to seek professional hope what do you do they decide to abuse substances or they harm themselves or worse they harm others so in case if you weren't keeping track inflation the cost of
058living gun violence and mental health are just some of the issues I see we can havoc on this country so what can we do about it we alone can't stop this country's Mental Health crisis it's obsession with guns greed or cutting out the middle class because the way I see it it's become the rich versus the poor we've seen that contacting Representatives and protesting results in little to no change yet that doesn't mean we should stop we must persist in creating the change that we want to see in this country and that starts with you so communicate communication with your family and your neighbors goes a long way check in on how they're doing talk to them have them check in on you because the bottom line is all we really have is each other
059thank you [Applause] our next speaker comes from lawera high school Ashley celaya [Applause] you open your eyes and smell the fresh winter air oh but let it aside once you remember that you have to go to that Dreadful job according to a society for human resource management at around 100 million full-time employees 51 say they are not engaged at work and tend to do the bare minimum you ask yourself what if I had pursued the career I wanted what if I had embraced change instead of pushing it away where would I be if if if hello my name is Ashley shalaya and many teenagers don't pursue their dreams due to the fear of failure we need to overcome that fear and Chase what we want no matter what anyone says picture this a student happily
060tells his teacher his vision for himself to become a real estate agent right after high school but gets shut down with the comments somewhere along the lines you have to go to college or you won't be successful Envision the athlete who made a mistake on the fields and the coach tells her that was a terrible shot what were you thinking are these empowering comments or common step of students down you have to go to college or you won't be successful versus that's great you should work hard for your vision instead of that was a terrible shot what were you thinking you replace it with you guys did very well but next time in for the right instead of the left which one would you rather hear there was a study in 2021 of how teachers
061expectations instilled confidence in grade 10 students called believe in me and I will too from over 100 interviews and 175 classroom observations it was found that a teacher's expectation for students can shape the way students view themselves a teacher who believes in students results in the students believing in themselves so everyone parents Educators coaches who encourage an environment where students can grow and feel empowered sometimes it takes just one person to believe in you for you to keep pursuing your dreams it takes just one person to spark hope in a student's heart if we all come together to create an environment where we can support and encourage each other imagine all the students who would pursue their dreams and would do great things in their life imagine all the students who would believe in themselves
062and who would fight for a brighter future last but not least for all the students out there pursue the life that was meant for you and do not settle for less ignore those negative comments inside your head but what if this but what if that but what if you'll succeed wake up and say I can do it get a journal and build a habit of writing three positive affirmations every morning as Eleanor Roosevelt said the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams what dreams are you going to chase thank you [Applause] we will now hear from Chloe Frank's representing Cypress High School [Applause] foreign [Applause] I would like to tell you a name Diane one day Diane collapsed at home she then crawled to the phone to call her mother
063and she was then rushed to the hospital now keep in mind Diane did not know she was pregnant at the time the doctors had to remove tissue from inside her uterus but this didn't solve the problem she then had to go in and back again for an exploratory surgery the result was a tubal pregnancy meaning she had a fertilized egg that had ruptured on the way to the uterus the result was internal bleeding she lost five pints of blood the procedure was termed as an abortion if this were to happen now without abortion rights Tayan would have been left to die Diane Franks is my grandmother and I can't imagine my life without her having Reproductive Rights means having autonomy over your body the fight to the right to our own bodies have been a
064fight since beginning of time abortion laws across the country varied widely in our nation's history in 1973 the Supreme Court hear the case of Jane Rowe and by a seven to two vote granted us a landmark decision of Roe v Wade the legalized abortions in the U.S but then in September of 2022 Roe v Wade was overturned this is where we were left off today and will we still debate the topic of abortions people think that by adding all these rules that that's going to stop abortions entirely but what it's really creating is a greater amount of unsafe abortions creating an unsafe world for women creating more life-threatening situations for women and creating bad parents from teens who didn't want to have children the World Health Organization states that 23 000 women die each year
065from unsafe abortions and another source states that banning abortions in the U.S would lead to a 21 increase in pregnancy-related deaths and a 33 percent increase among women of color according to these U.S statistics 74 percent of women feel that having a child would disrupt their education and their profession and the Kaiser Family Foundation states that costs over eighteen thousand dollars on average to have a child and that's including pregnancy delivery and postpartum care denying access to abortion is denying women the right to her own body denying access to abortion is denying women freedom and the supposedly free country there are still 14 states fighting for abortion rights I would like you all to Envision a world where women have full Freedom over their bodies Envision a world where women can pursue any profession without
066the constraints of stereotypical gender norms so what does this mean for us what can we do I ask you to open your mind heart and soul to this problem I ask you to educate yourselves and fight for what you know is right I ask you to find the planned parenthoods and help them by donating sharing your story and volunteering your time most importantly I ask you to look at the women in your life and walk with them no matter what their Journey may be no one should be denied the right to their own body no one should have to know life without their mother their grandmother their sister or niece thank you [Applause] and now representing Anaheim ilc is Raul Benitez [Applause] yeah I'm driving out of town one of my tire pops I'm in
067the middle of nowhere and my phone has no signal then I questioned to myself will I be using math in a situation like this my point here is schools don't teach students basic life skills such as simple mechanical education learning to file taxes cooking or something as practical as reading street signs we high school students should be taught topics that will be a part of our everyday lives not only will this help us save money in the long run but we will become more independent skills like this should be added to public school curriculums and be prioritized a couple suggestions I put forward are adding driver EDS classes and home economic classes these classes can add good habits to students such as simple make these classes can these classes can create good habits for students
068and these classes can help create good good habits for students like being organized clean and productive in addition to this Hands-On and outdoor activities can awaken students brains so students should um so schools should add more in addition to this Hands-On and outdoor activities can awaken students brains so more field trips should be added throughout the school year The Independent Learning Program at Anaheim high does a phenomenal job with this technique by opening up new opportunities and interest for students in conclusion government officials should change their focus on education which is why I believe school should prioritize the basics thank you all and have a great day sorry for the impressive [Applause] Live Theater and now from Kennedy High School Julianne roses [Applause] today the concept of rape culture is disturbingly prevalent especially in a
069world where young women like me exist according to rain.org the nation's largest anti-sexual violence organization out of 1 000 sexual assaults 975 perpetrators were walk free our federal courts need to begin to take rape and sexual assault seriously and stop excusing rapists of their crime letting them off easy with little to no sentence Unfortunately today sexual assault occurs more than any of us can ever imagine yet we can't be hypocritical and blame the victims for not coming forth with their traumas because there already have been many who have spoken up but time and time again our courts deny them one widely known rape case involves Chanel Miller who in 2015 was raped after Brock Turner took advantage of her while she was intoxicated and unconscious Brock Turner was convicted of quote three felony counts facing
070up to 14 years in prison yet judge Aaron persky sentenced him to just six months in the county jail that absurds sentence later docked down to just three months all Chanel Miller's trauma deemed an absolute joke by the court the most shocking part about this case is that there were Witnesses Carl Frederick and his friend Peter Johnson who when they saw what was going on they had to pin down Brock Turner until police arrived and as they did an interview with ABC News Carl said that he had to check to make sure Chanel was still alive as she was unconscious the entire time Chanel Miller was failed to be heard even with Witnesses and as hard as it was for her to share her experience to begin with well imagine how much harder it was
071for her to see the entire story flipped to see Brock Turner deem the victim women and men are both sexualized greatly in today's society but unfortunately our government does nothing but reinforce this we have to speak up against normalized sexual assault and plead for legitimate and fair sentencing for rapists and sex offenders not a three-month sentence so speak up stand up against something that you know is wrong even if you think that you alone cannot make a change because one person at a time that's exactly how we change the world and appearing anything during my speech overwhelmed you or made you feel uncomfortable understand that that was exactly my point according to Central CM Sexual Assault Center only about six percent of reported rapists ever serve a day in jail we have to be aware
072and stop being ignorant pretending like this isn't happening stand up speak up for something that you know is wrong even if you think that you alone cannot make the change because just like Mariska Hargitay once said domestic violence and sexual assault are difficult things to talk about I acknowledge that so let's talk about them anyway help give a voice to those who are voiceless because for the victims of rape and sexual assault for Chanel Miller this isn't just their reality it's mine and it's yours too thank you [Applause] and now from Katella High School Susanna caseda [Applause] in 2023 it is unlikely that you will find a classroom full of confident students you might find a few you might find Tim saying they feel confident on Monday and only six saying they feel confident on
073Wednesday confidence is so weird it's a word we throw around so casually it's the thing every young adult wants more of but how exactly are we supposed to address the lack of confidence and low self-esteem of today's teenagers we see how such a problem is already affecting our real world according to the Dutch Ministry of Education students with low self-esteem struggle to make decisions about their education such as choosing a major these students often dropped out of their selected Majors while students with healthy self-esteem levels completed their degrees in the majors they initially chose why is this important for one I hope my surgeon is confident in their career choice but more importantly we see how our self-esteem can affect our long-term goals and the overall outcome of Our Lives low self-esteem creates a lack
074of self-confidence I asked a group of students at my school what caused these feelings of self-doubt and poor image in them and one word stood out to me the most expectations students explained that feeling and inability to reach certain expectations is what drives their confidence to the ground we create these expectations through comparison through what we wish we could do and what we know we will never achieve comparison is not only the thief of Joy but it also pickpockets our confidence a heartbreaking response from one of the students I interviewed was I want to be the person others see me as because I will never see myself that way if students didn't struggle with these self-esteem issues and didn't have low confidence perhaps we would see more teen involvement in our schools and our communities
075but instead us teens fall into a spiral of excessive self-criticism and self-loathing we wish we could just please everyone but it does not have to be this way you can all start to build confidence in yourselves right now we must tell ourselves that we are capable of achieving our goals and everyone is truly capable just look at what you have already done how far you've come another part of this positive self-talk well it's super cliche is to reassure yourself as many times as you have to tell yourself I can do it people often link their identities to their thoughts use this to your advantage and of course remember that nobody is looking nobody is watching as teens we can all be a little self-absorbed or very self-absorbed but how often do you actually pay attention
076to the people around you how often do you forget about them once you're not in their presence perhaps the best advice on confidence that I have received is that a confident person does not need to ask permission because they trust themselves I invite my fellow teens to do this trust yourself to be yourself you might shine brighter than you think thank you [Applause] [Music] representing Anaheim high school please welcome Clarissa Rubio [Applause] you hear footsteps down the corridor you listen to them bump into things knocking stuff down every word you speak is spoken in a slurred tone this is what I and 7.5 million other children in the US face daily when one of their parents come only drunk according to the mental health services Administration millions of families plagued with a constant struggle of
077having one of their family members develop this ravenous ceaseless Beast known as addiction hello my name is Clarissa Rubio and this is how alcohol addiction impacts families families torn apart Financial struggles life-friendly situations abuse and even death alcohol addiction doesn't only affect alcoholics but their families as well the conflicts arise between spouses the arguing the yelling and in some cases abuse caused by the financial struggles alcohol addiction brings on to them over five thousand dollars each year is wasted on alcohol addiction according to the CDC and being surrounded with all this conflict and violence in their household can cause serious problems to the children many of these children develop depression anxiety and a multitude of academic challenges what's worse is that in some cases the anger and aggression are aimed towards as children instead according
078to prevent child abuse America 1.2 million children are victim of child abuse due to their caretakers being under the influence of alcohol or any other drug my dad had to grow up with an abusive alcoholic father and he resorts to drinking as a way to nullify the pain bringing the generational curse of alcohol addiction back to our household I experienced constant arguing growing up the fighting the yelling and I stayed silent about the issues I faced at home I stay silent because I thought no one would care because everyone goes through this right but no decision needs to be heard because you cannot stay silent about something that keeps affecting you on your day-to-day basis this is why I'm here today to share my experience with all of you so that no one else has
079you deal with the burden of alcohol addiction alone resources such as Al-Anon allow people who experience alcohol addiction to share their experience with others who also had the same experiences but what can you do to support these people you and others can help support these people by being there for them showing your support being mindful of what they're of what they're doing so that they don't have to deal with this alone so they can look forward to a future without alcohol holding them back thank you [Applause] [Music] wrapping up our evening tonight our final speaker is from Western High School please welcome Ian debernitz I'm not I'm not starting it but uh forgive me if you kind of see me shaking my hand like this and then I kind of clench my fist in something
080um I'm sharing a lot of personal stuff about my topic because um I've had a lot of people in my life who were affected by this um my dad had passed away from you know this kind of thing because he didn't take care of it before it's too late and so um I'm stress rambling but this is just kind of helped me get my my nerves down so sorry [Applause] there we go self-care for students like me starts at the simple things three meals a day eight hours of sleep and an abstinence from harmful substances it's ironic to me then that when I speak to many students they actively refuse these core parts to a healthy lifestyle I didn't take care of myself and because of this I suffered my first of three epileptic seizures
081and was diagnosed epileptic for four years I didn't even know you could become epileptic because of this but you learned something new every day I'm not gonna stand here and tell you to eat your greens get your eight hours and don't do drugs that's something that should be drilled into you by your schools and your mentors but what I am going to tell you is how not to become a statistic on nihl.gov 20 of caffeine consumers rely on it just to function properly on ncbi.gov one in three Americans suffer from severe sleep disorders and from eating disorders alone on anad.gov 26 percent make an attempt on their own life sorry forgive me if we could realize that our health relies on our responsibility imagine what we could accomplish that could be the difference between getting
082that next promotion or saving your life I refuse to stand here and watch people ruin themselves but who am I just someone who made the changes possible to get where I am today and get off my medication all I can say is if I can do it why can't you [Applause] thank you oh [Applause] I I just can't believe it I just can't believe what I've heard tonight and I'm sure that you think the same thing please let's give a huge round of applause to our amazing speakers while the final scores are being calculated we'd like to turn it over to our judges for just a few moments to let them share some of their thoughts of what they saw here this evening wow I am completely blown away by the quality The Passion of
083our students I am just so honored to be here and listen to the amazing powerful messages and the voices of our students I'm grateful for our district to provide this platform for them and the teachers who helped every single one of our students do an amazing job the topics range and again I'm just completely floored I could not even come close to doing anything like that so I'm so proud of every single one of our students [Applause] [Music] if you are a School site champion and performed here tonight will you please stand up so we can honor you and give you another round of applause for your amazing work to Echo what Diana has shared I am blown away by each and every one of you you give me hope for our future I could
084never have done what you have all just done thank you so much for the joy you're bringing back to the world for being brave to share many of you personal stories and I hope you will continue to do this work for the rest of your life to spread the awareness and to be an active citizen in your community thank you to all of you magnificent that's all I can say everything I am blown away as well um and I need to say thank you for sharing your stories and being so professional and profound about doing it I thank you I'm just honored to be here as the scores are still being tabulated I'd like to invite someone from the top and I'm not sure which top man is coming up who would like to say
085a few words to close us off ah superintendent natsuda thank you [Applause] foreign you know I wish America could hear from our young people like you who represents are 27 000 students you have given them voice you have given them heart you have given them hope and I also want to really thank our teachers in the field who have supported you who have probably practiced with you who have helped build your confidence and I am so proud that we have our board members here too to witness because they're the ones who support or the resources the time all the energy and the logistics to make this happen and I am so proud of auhsd for showing the way forward for America's young people thank you and I Echo our judges that you give all of
086us hope for this country because you have articulated the challenges ahead but you've done so from the heart and you have demonstrated each of the five C's especially the fifth one compassion congratulations [Applause] the speakers that you heard tonight were site winners at their own schools but there are dozens and dozens of other students who also participated in this program and shared their voices with their communities so tonight I welcome you I encourage you to discuss with your speaker with each other what what speeches resonated with you tonight and what could be your soapbox issue what's important to you and what can you share with the world before we leave I'd like to thank again our teachers our students our student ambassadors for being with us and as our board members come to the stage
087[Applause] and as I call the names of the top people uh please come up and receive your trophy and please stay up here and once we are all finished I invite all speakers to please come up to the stage for a photograph our Junior High winners in third place Sophia Morello from Brookhurst [Applause] in second place from Orange View [Applause] in first place for junior high the soapbox speech finals Ellie City Muhammad from Dale [Applause] excellent our Junior High winners [Applause] and now we move to the high school in third place Julianne roses from Kennedy [Applause] [Music] in second place Chloe Franks from Cyprus [Applause] and our top height our top winner in the High School Division in first place Mimi alkalash from Magnolia foreign [Applause] but don't forget it could be you spreading the
088message of what's important to you thank you everyone for being here tonight speakers please do come up for a final photograph and I look forward to seeing you next year thank you so much [Applause]