This essay contest takes its title from a 1951 poem by Langston Hughes: What Happens to a Dream Deferred? The poem helped propel the civil rights movement in the United States. Today, it will hopefully inspire you to describe your dream deferred for the Middle East, which the United Nations calls the world’s least free region.
Contact : Emmanuel Benhamou
Address : 1770 Massachusetts Avenue #623 Cambridge, MA 02140
Phone : 617-661-0053
Email Address : eb@hamsaweb.org
Website Address : http://www.hamsaweb.com/essay-contest.php
Application Deadline : March 31, 2007
Number Of Awards : 5
Maximum Amount : $2,000
The Dream Deferred essay contest has two parts: one for Middle Eastern youth (25 and younger) and one for American youth (25 and younger). To participate, all you have to do is write a brief essay (600-2,000 words) addressing one of the questions below. Winners – selected by a panel of celebrity judges – will receive a $2,000 prize, with other prizes for top essays (details below).
Answer one of the following questions:
1. Why should Americans help civil rights reformers in the Middle East? Consider the role outsiders played in the South during the American civil rights movement. Reflect on the challenges faced by today’s Middle East reformers, as expressed by a blogger from Bahrain: “We continuously live in abject fear of the rulers and their instruments… If you dissent – and there are many who do – then the wrath of terror is visited upon you and your family. That means no income, no business, no education, no job, and no life. It is a very brave man or woman indeed who bucks the trend.” Explore moral and strategic imperatives – as well as the consequences of inaction.
2. How can you as an individual support the struggle for civil rights in the Middle East? Without waiting for the government to act, consider how you can leverage your freedom to challenge repression by dictators. Reflect on recent technological advances that empower individuals, as well as recent grassroots organizing by people your age across the Middle East. Consider the tools you have access to that American civil rights activists in the 1960’s did not. Propose a specific campaign young Americans could lead to help defend civil rights in the Middle East.
3. What might the future look like if Americans partner effectively with Middle Eastern reformers? Envision a focused movement and describe it in action: What are its slogan, symbols, and campaigns? What individual rights has it secured? Consider the obstacles surmounted and the factors behind the movement’s success. If you like, write a newspaper article from the year 2010 reporting on the accomplishments of this new civil rights alliance. Don’t be afraid to dream, but make sure to ground your vision with substance.
Submissions must be done online. No application is required.
http://www.hamsaweb.com/essay-contest.php
