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Dear Judge,
We encourage you to seek personal support if you become troubled by the content of this category. If you experience an emotional crisis, please call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (available 24/7) or the California Warm Line at (833) 845-7415 .
The entries you are judging are submissions in the Hope and Justice category. Entries in this category deal with a variety of topics including mental health, suicide prevention, social justice and other complex topics that need to be addressed with compassion and knowledge.
For this category we asked youth to communicate about what they are feeling, increase knowledge about an issue or take a stand against injustice, or share their perspective in a way that gives others a glimpse into their lives. While some youth submit entries share ideas for solutions to the issues of concern, others used this as an opportunity to process their feelings in a therapeutic way.
We welcome all types of submissions. In our submission criteria, we remind youth that whatever message they choose, their submissions need to be thoughtful and respectful. We asked youth to be honest about their feelings, but to be sure their entries convey that they are coming from a place of cultural humility and have the intent to further understanding and constructive dialogue about social justice and change. So, as a judge please score each of these entries based on how well they conveyed their messages and followed these guidelines.
At any point if you are experiencing technical difficulties with the website, or have questions regarding the category, please email shanti@youthcreatingchange.org or call (619) 786-5622.
In advance, we appreciate your time.
This is called Rags to Riches. I was rebellious, misguided, and seeking a father figure or role model, someone to look up to. I am now incarcerated, acknowledging the aftermath of the aftermath, and this entry is me explaining that. My life was chaotic growing up, and losing our house and becoming homeless left me thinking the streets were all I had. Mistakes were made once my gang banging career started, and that shaped me into who I am today. I’m currently incarcerated at Juvenile Hall, and sitting with nothing but time helped me acknowledge that who I was is an outcome of the problems delivered in my life, and now I’m dealing with the aftermath of that aftermath. I acknowledge this lifestyle is not who I will be. I am a changed young man who’s goal driven, with a different belief system, a different mindset, and a bunch of goals to reach, including finishing college, going into trade school for HVAC, and building a good future for myself. I was rebellious, misguided, and seeking a father figure or role model. I am a changed young man that’s goal driven. I will be great. This is my story from rags to riches.
