The Stinger October Issue 2020

OpeningtheDoorto
ConversationatDHS
ByHebaMalik
Myname’sHeba,andI’m a
junioratDHS.Thissummer,withal
thetimeteenagerslikemefound
ourselvesspendingonsocialmedia,
Iwasabletoseesomething
incrediblyhopeful,somethingthat
inspiredme.Isaw how weasyoung
adultswereeducatingourselves
abouttheworldaroundusandwhat
washappeninginit,Isaw how we
wereunwaveringinourdiligenceto
sharewhatwehadlearnt,tostart
conversationsweweren’thaving
before,andIsaw how weused
socialmediaasatooltodoso.
Flashforwardtovirtualschool.
I’vejustturnedinmyfirstmajor
assignmentinmyEnglishclass,a
speechonthetopicofmychoice.
Admitedly,it’squitelateatnight
becauseI’veleftsomebitsand
piecesoftheassignmenttodoat
thelastmoment.Ithinktomyself,‘I
am proudofmywork,andIbelieveI
havedonejusticetothetopicIhave
chosen.’Iheadtobed.Wewatch
eachother’sspeechesthenext
morningduringclass,Mr.Bearns
happenstobe‘sitingin’thatday.I
know mypeersareawesome,
hardworkingstudents,soI
anticipateI’m inforatreatwith
thesespeechpresentations.But
therewassomethingIwasn’t
anticipating.WhatIdidn’tknow was
thatIwouldyetagainbemovedand
inspiredbythepeoplearoundme.I
wouldonceagainbeinsheer
amazementofourcapabilityasa
generationtostartimportant,
necessaryconversationsabout
anextensivevarietyoftopics,made
possiblethroughourdiscussionand
advocacyforspreadingawareness.
Inclassthatday,Iheardspeeches
abouttopicsrangingfrom the
“plague”ofcolorism toinherent
flawsintheAmericanPrison
System.Ilearnedalotthatday,and
Ithinkyoucanaswel.
Herearesomesnippetsfrom Ms.
Bailey’sEnglishclassthatday.Ifyou
wouldliketoread(orevenview
presentationsof)anyofthe
folowingspeeches,besuretovisit
thisurl:
htps:/bit.ly/34pKfLn
“Oneofthemostdifficultthingsto
doistosomehowconjurean
impressiveideaandexpressit,
entertainingly,intheform ofleters.
Theobscurityofthistaskliesnotin
thelackofcreativitytocreatea
wondrousidea,butintheabilityto
present.Theabilitytomustera
wholearsenalofwordsanduse
them tomakethedulestofcolours
andtheblandestofstoriesinto
somethingquite.extraordinary.”
AminahZufaizaldelvesintoa
discussionabout“Humanity’s
GreatestPower”(ThePowerof
Words)
“Imagineaworldinwhichyoulived
inconstantfear.Aworldinwhich
sincetheageof13,thefearofan
intimatepartner,aneighbor,a
friendinescapablyoneday
becomingyourperpetratorwasan
inevitablereality.Thefactofthe
materis,wedon’thavetoimagine
it.Wealreadyliveinsuchaworld.”
HebaMalikdiscussedtheproblem
ofviolenceagainstIndigenous
AmericanwomenintheUS
“It’sthe21stcenturyandweare
stilstuckwiththeideathatour
complexionshowsoursuperiority
orinferiorityinsociety.It’sthe21st
centuryandwearestilfailingtolet
ourgirlsandboysfindcomfortin
theirownskin.It’sthe21stcentury
andwearestilpromotingracism in
ourculture.”
EmanMahmoodinformedtheclass
about“ThePlaguethatisColorism”