We should be Proud of who we are

I was in 10th grade the first time I learned the low percentages of Latinos that attending college after High School. When I first notice that Latinos have the lowest attending and graduation rates from college in this nation, I felt sad and disappointed. I knew that I wanted to do something to change those percentages but, I did not know what to do to help my community. A few months later, I obtain the opportunity to work in my school as a Youth Leader.

As a Youth Leader my role is to work by side with the school college counselor, helping 12th graders students apply to college, assisting 11th graders to start their college process, and leading college workshops for 10th graders students. By doing this, I am encouraging my peers to making their college process easier and clarify any wrong information that they may have about college. I feel content and enthusiastic by knowing that I am contributing to help those percentages grow.

The most rewarding part of been a Youth Leade is when my peers get accepted, I feel happy because I know that we will all have success.

I grew up in an environment where embracing your identity was unright, unless you were light skin, straight hair and blue eyes. In other words, if you had any African characteristic, you wouldn’t be beautiful. In countries such as, Dominican Republic there exist a lot of discrimination against African Heritage. The discrimination that exist is so oppressing to a point that a girl with curly hair cannot attend school with her natural hair.

Although there are many activists fighting for things like this to stop happening, there is a lot to accomplish yet. Therefore, in the future I would like to found an organization that embraces African heritage and Hispanic identity. Currently in my position as a Youth Leader and Class Vice President I interact with most of the students in my school.I step in. I tell them all the reasons why they should be proud of who they are, how they look like and why their identity is not inferior to others. As a Latina, immigrant and living without my parents, I try to give the best of me all the time and encourage my peers to do the same. Persevering above the obstacles and barriers that we could face through our lives. I see my education as a segway to becoming a scholar, who is able to advocate for the rights of human beings, and against the oppression of cultures. Having come from a different country myself, I am able to provide diverse perspectives on life abroad. By leveraging, my experiences and remaining tenacious, passionate, and fervently independent, I am sure that educating myself and helping my community is what I desire to do for the rest of my life.