[et_pb_section admin_label=”section”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=”Image” src=”http:\/\/anchorwind.net\/2\/wp-content\/uploads\/Alone_518_Tribunal.jpg” show_in_lightbox=”off” url_new_window=”on” use_overlay=”off” animation=”fade_in” sticky=”off” align=”left” force_fullwidth=”off” always_center_on_mobile=”on” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” url=”http:\/\/anchorwind.net\/2\/wp-content\/uploads\/Alone_518_Tribunal.jpg”] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Digital Art Gold Medal Winner<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=”Divider” color=”#1c1c1c” show_divider=”on” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” divider_weight=”5px” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
America is greater than the sum of its parts.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 At times, this can be difficult to see, as everywhere we turn we are consistently reminded of our imperfections.\u00a0 Sometimes it is easy to get lost in those striving to restrain the progress of our already-great country.\u00a0\u00a0 Then,\u00a0 as is often the case,\u00a0 we grow weary of relitigating every step that brought us here and we are forced to put it down and step away.\u00a0\u00a0 Invisible, then, becomes all but the negatives we were focused on, and with it the perspective we need to soldier on.<\/p>\n
America, if anywhere in human history, is diversity personified.\u00a0 Our roots trace back to every corner of the globe:\u00a0 African, Asian, European, Latin, Indigenous, \u00a0and a wonderful plethora of others that may not neatly fit into the aforementioned groups.\u00a0\u00a0 We incorporate these parts and make ourselves even greater still.\u00a0\u00a0 In turn,\u00a0 our vast and assimilated culture gives back to the world that helps make us.\u00a0\u00a0 Our media is consumed by a hungry global audience,\u00a0 our politics and policies discussed by citizens of other countries,\u00a0 and our sports inspires young athletes well beyond our shores. \u00a0\u00a0We continue to grow and change with the world, as we are very much a part of it and increasingly more so in our interconnected world.<\/p>\n
Our progress is not, and has not been, a smooth ride.\u00a0 America has a clearly defined center of power:\u00a0 the White, Christian, Heterosexual, Native-Born, Wealthy, Male.\u00a0 For much of our history,\u00a0 this center of power has maintained dominance over much of the country as a whole:\u00a0 socially, politically, economically, et al.\u00a0\u00a0 That center of power was virtually the only seat at the table.\u00a0 However,\u00a0 we have the biggest table in the world and we have been, and are still trying to bring more seats in.<\/p>\n
From the Marches in Salma, Alabama in 1965 to the Women\u2019s Marches of 2017 we continue to bring more seats to the table.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 From Occupy Wall Street, to the Standing Rock Protests, we continue to bring more seats to the table.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Pride Parades,\u00a0 Immigration Airport Protests, and celebrations of all of our unique cultures help us to continue to bring more seats to the table.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 While we encounter resistance with each step,\u00a0 especially from those in the center of power,\u00a0 we continue to show ourselves and the world that America is for us all.<\/p>\n
When we are dealing with people, often in or near the center of power,\u00a0 who have had their fears regarding their seat at the table exploited, it is important to remember that while we are trying to bring in seats for everyone theirs isn\u2019t being diminished.\u00a0 Equal seats for an equal America, one that works for us all.\u00a0 A robust and rich country, filled with the hopes and dreams from seeds far and wide.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 An America that leads and absorbs.\u00a0\u00a0 An America that reminds us all, we are greater than the sum of our parts.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Gold Medal Winner \u2013 Essay, Inspirational\u00a0 \/\/ Judge\u2019s Award Winner<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=”Divider” color=”#1c1c1c” show_divider=”on” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” divider_weight=”5px” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
In the buildup to getting to go see the Marvel Black Panther movie, I was exposed to individuals proclaiming \u2018No Real Americans\u2019 are going to watch that movie.\u00a0 It was a sad reminder for me that dog-whistle phrase is still alive and well in 2018.\u00a0 It is another thing to add to the pile of weight we have lowering our bar, and these last months have shown that pile is fairly large.\u00a0 I walked into the theatre and selected my seat, thinking about more than just comic books.<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s theatres, as many of us know, the previews last for quite some time.\u00a0 I sat there, pondering the NFL protests, and the Black Lives Matter movement. I sat and thought about how people took both and made it about themselves instead.\u00a0 I thought about President Obama, and how people performed the mental gymnastics necessary to convince themselves he wasn\u2019t the president, how he wasn\u2019t even American.\u00a0 I thought about how people who aren\u2019t \u2018Real Americans\u2019 are often portrayed, or represented.<\/p>\n
The movie was starting and I was thinking about how we, in America, are made up of so many cultures and we all want to see ourselves represented well in the media.\u00a0 I doubt many people exclusively want only negative stereotypes shown, to be typecast, or to have few opportunities in general in the industry.\u00a0 We, as people, are diverse creatures with much to show and give.\u00a0 We are more than: a skin color, a place of birth, an accent, an orientation, etc.\u00a0 We\u2019re living, breathing, feeling, thinking, beings.<\/p>\n
I was sitting, watching a thoroughly enjoyable movie, and with the unfortunate individuals\u2019 words in the back of my head I found myself appreciating it for something a little bit more. This was not one strong, smart, fast, Black face on screen \u2013 it was an entire cast of them! This was women, and men, being caring and talented,\u00a0 savvy and capable.\u00a0 The movie does address issues such as oppression and abandonment, issues that clearly impact us today in the real world.\u00a0 The movie also shows a host of positive things:\u00a0 family, duty, community, education, \u00a0etc.,\u00a0 things that cultures wish to see of themselves in the media.<\/p>\n
I sat there,\u00a0 refreshed at the relatability of the characters in the movie and wondered about how many girls will watch it and be inspired, from either: the strong and loyal warrior general,\u00a0 the smooth multi-lingual spy, or the smart technological genius.\u00a0\u00a0 Perhaps all three? \u00a0I wondered how many fathers will enjoy the inspiration of their daughters.\u00a0 However, I wondered about why the dwindling percentage of people who feel they need to separate themselves and other \u2018Real Americans\u2019 from everyone else needs to do so to begin with and what they would have to say about the movie.\u00a0 This movie was a good movie.<\/p>\n
Then it hit me,\u00a0 I was celebrating this movie, in a way.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 For so long it feels like we have fewer reasons to celebrate, we take it where we can.\u00a0 Our bar isn\u2019t as high as it used to be, after all.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I was celebrating for a community that wasn\u2019t my own.\u00a0\u00a0 This wasn\u2019t a picture of sex and drugs.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This wasn\u2019t a picture of gangs and guns.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This wasn\u2019t about street crime,\u00a0 or any of the other motifs we see time and again.\u00a0 \u00a0This was a positive movie,\u00a0 where a people learn from their mistakes and forge a better path.<\/p>\n
I understand it was a comic book movie,\u00a0 but I was thrilled it happened.\u00a0\u00a0 Members of that community can watch it, see themselves on the big screen and put themselves into it.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Young people all across the country, from the rural south to the inner cities,\u00a0 will watch it and see themselves.\u00a0 The next generation of: soldiers, spies, scientists, politicians, etc.,\u00a0 are all being inspired right now despite being told they\u2019re not a \u2018Real American\u2019 and they can\u2019t do it.\u00a0\u00a0 Well,\u00a0 if succeeding in spite of being told you can\u2019t isn\u2019t American,\u00a0 I don\u2019t know what is.<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Gold Medal Winner \u2013 Short, Short Story<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=”Divider” color=”#1c1c1c” show_divider=”on” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” divider_weight=”5px” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
My Generation does not exist in ideal times;\u00a0 it never has.\u00a0 \u00a0For most of our lives, we\u2019ve been in some sort of conflict:\u00a0\u00a0 The Post-9\/11 conflicts are still raging strong and that was half a life ago or more,\u00a0 but the anti-intellectualism and economic conflicts here at home have been a constant our entire lives. \u00a0\u00a0As we maneuver the daily grind of our stressful world, some refer to us loosely as \u2018Millennials,\u2019 often as a pejorative.\u00a0 However, we are Generation Y.\u00a0 More specifically, we are Generation: Why?<\/p>\n
Why do we pay exorbitant costs for health care yet have lower life expectancies than those who pay less?\u00a0 Why do we want generations of people entering the workforce already burdened with tens of thousands of dollars of debt from education?\u00a0 Why are we ok with the vast majority of money created in our country going to a select few people?\u00a0\u00a0 Why are we ok with our political system being sold to the highest bidder?\u00a0 Why are we ok with systematically creating second class citizens through racism, sexism, religion, etc.?<\/p>\n
We, often, ask \u2018Why?\u2019\u00a0 This, as we discover, begins to make people uncomfortable.\u00a0\u00a0 We\u2019re threatening the status quo.\u00a0\u00a0 The people who are quite comfortable with the way things are don\u2019t want a connected people asking questions.\u00a0\u00a0 The comfortable don\u2019t want us blinking confusedly at them,\u00a0 typing something into a device and saying to them we couldn\u2019t find what they were talking about.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0The comfortable don\u2019t want to be: fact-checked, questioned, challenged, or be bothered with change they did not initiate.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0In today\u2019s world it is easier for the comfortable to dismiss the things that do not neatly conform to their wishes as fake, and it poses real problems.\u00a0 The fact-check crowd vs. the fake-news crowd is colliding and it is apparent there is an alternate reality in which the fake-news crowd have created for themselves and have retreated to in droves.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that\u00a0\u2018my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.\u2019\u201d Isaac Asimov pointed this out some time ago and it has long held true.\u00a0 However,\u00a0 it is not as true now and is fading.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 While the willfully ignorant are a vocal minority, they are a minority, and their actions are being confronted with increasing regularity.\u00a0\u00a0 Everything, from: the actions of discriminatory politicians to a family member on Facebook,\u00a0 from an ill-conceived Youtube video to bots, trolls, and shills everywhere one turns, the confrontation is real. \u00a0\u00a0We will continue to ask \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Our actions, because of equal and opposite reactions, has of course caused the anti-intellectuals to dig in.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 However, we\u2019re not going to stop asking \u201cWhy?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 We aren\u2019t going to stop asking \u201cWhy can\u2019t we create a nation and economy that works for us all?\u201d \u00a0\u00a0We aren\u2019t going to stop asking \u201cWhy can\u2019t we tackle the new changing global realities?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 We are going to continue asking \u201cWhere did you get that information?\u201d We\u2019re encouraged by the progress we can see from each other and people we touch.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 While we live in dark times, and in a way this is a culmination of many things that have been building throughout our entire lives,\u00a0 we can picture a dawn on the horizon.\u00a0 This picture is easier to see, for we are actively out in our respective communities creating it ourselves the best we can.\u00a0 We know it won\u2019t be completed tomorrow, and we will have many moments of anger along the way,\u00a0 but the future has bright potential.<\/p>\n
Our picture contains people from all walks of life.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Many of us have seen the privileged, the comfortable, believe equality to be oppression.\u00a0\u00a0 While we reject this notion, we have seen that resistance in action:\u00a0 for if they kill you quickly then it is an attack, but if they kill you slowly then it is just politics.\u00a0\u00a0 We, being used to constant conflict,\u00a0 are fighting back.\u00a0\u00a0 We, armed with the question \u201cWhy?\u201d\u00a0 are demanding answers of people unused to accountability.\u00a0\u00a0 We,\u00a0 standing abreast with those of all demographics willing to stand with those of all demographics, here in objective reality,\u00a0 create a better picture for us all.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 When we aren\u2019t our worst enemy, what can\u2019t we do?<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Gold Medal Winner \u2013 Essay, Other<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=”Divider” color=”#1c1c1c” show_divider=”on” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” divider_weight=”5px” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
As I sit here, during Black History Month, shortly after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.\u2019s\u00a0 birthday,\u00a0 it\u2019s hard not to reflect upon what\u2019s going on around me.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0It been a common thought that the veteran community is one cohesive entity:\u00a0 shared goals,\u00a0 shared aspirations,\u00a0 shared struggles, et al.\u00a0\u00a0 However,\u00a0 the veteran community is a microcosm of society, forged in the crucible of battle.\u00a0 After all,\u00a0 we are made from society at large and transformed through experience.\u00a0\u00a0 Thus,\u00a0 while we tend to have a mutual respect and basic understanding of one another\u2019s service,\u00a0 we do move in our own directions.<\/p>\n
One such example of a lack of unity within the veteran community was reactions, or responses, to NFL athletes protesting.\u00a0 \u00a0For the purpose of tact, I\u2019ll refer to two places:\u00a0 The Organization, or Org for short, and The Circle.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In a gathering in October 2017,\u00a0 The Org entertained the idea of banning the NFL from their premises.\u00a0\u00a0 I was baffled,\u00a0 momentarily stunned even.\u00a0\u00a0 The idea was so foreign to me it was asinine.\u00a0\u00a0 The Org is comprised entirely of veterans,\u00a0 defenders of free speech!\u00a0 Yet,\u00a0 they were seriously entertaining the idea of banning speech with which they didn\u2019t agree.<\/p>\n
I entered this conversation.\u00a0 I was on the backfoot from the start, being unaware and confused this was even a possibility.\u00a0 These protests have a pretty unambiguous message:\u00a0 Racial Injustice.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Unfortunately,\u00a0 racial injustice is not a new phenomenon in the USA.\u00a0\u00a0 Whether we look at: the criminal justice system,\u00a0 how people get hired or compensated,\u00a0 who gets approved for loans,\u00a0 and routine daily interactions,\u00a0 the message of \u2018I\u2019ll stand for you when you stand for me\u2019 has merit;\u00a0 citizens in the black community have been left behind.\u00a0 It\u2019s objective reality.<\/p>\n
In addition to asking why the Org is taking issue with a league that is approximately 70% African-American raising awareness about issues that impact their community,\u00a0\u00a0 I inquired as to why we are taking issue with a silent and peaceful protest.\u00a0 We, if anyone at all,\u00a0 should be on the forefront defending this.\u00a0 This is an example of what it\u2019s all about:\u00a0 not shooting anyone from hotel windows, or running people over with cars,\u00a0 no racist slogans, no riot gear,\u00a0 no intimidation tactics at all.\u00a0 \u00a0A peaceful protest.<\/p>\n
I quickly learned none of that mattered.\u00a0\u00a0 People at the Org had co-opted the message to make it to be about them.\u00a0\u00a0 They had been disrespected, and as such the NFL had to go.\u00a0\u00a0 The Org was disrespected, they disagreed with what was going on, so they were going to get rid of it.\u00a0 A vote was held, and by a narrow majority a ban was put in place.\u00a0 I walked away amazed,\u00a0 I knew I needed to bring it up at The Circle at tomorrow\u2019s gathering.<\/p>\n
I brought it up at the first opportunity I had was essentially laughed out of the room.\u00a0 The veterans of the Circle didn\u2019t even take me seriously,\u00a0 I had to go out of my way to explain the whole story.\u00a0 I had to walk them through the concept that a group of veterans voted to ban the NFL.\u00a0\u00a0 They were nearly as amazed as I was.\u00a0\u00a0 The Circle is a exponentially more diverse group of veterans:\u00a0 racially, spiritually,\u00a0 generationally, etc.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We sat and tried to wrap our heads around it.\u00a0\u00a0 In December 2017,\u00a0 we would hold a tailgate themed party at The Circle, and I would watch the Super Bowl with members of The Circle.<\/p>\n
In November 2017, at The Org,\u00a0 it was brought up that other members didn\u2019t really get a chance to have their say.\u00a0 No one knew this was coming and it was the talk of the town.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Ban was kept in place and we would revisit it in December 2017 now that everyone knew to come.\u00a0\u00a0 The discussions in December 2017 were just as disheartening, but in a different way:\u00a0 they centered around themes like \u2018we already made a statement, how can we change course now?\u2019 and \u2018how has this affected our business?\u2019 despite initially arguing this was about principles not business.\u00a0 Again,\u00a0 I received no acknowledgment of what the protests actually meant.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Another vote was held and again by a slim majority the Ban was kept.\u00a0\u00a0 Twice now, The Org has banned the NFL.<\/p>\n
In January 2018, with the realities of their decision having fully settled in,\u00a0 certain members of The Org tried to stretch some technicalities and definitions so they could show the Super Bowl, despite having banned the entire NFL thus far.\u00a0\u00a0 These were the same people who helped ban the NFL in the first place.\u00a0 I, as well as others, weren\u2019t having it.\u00a0\u00a0 This was clearly a business decision and what appeared to be a hypocritical one at that.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The vote failed,\u00a0 and shortly thereafter I received an email about closing the place down early on that Sunday.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I, again remembering this was never supposed to be a business decision as per the ban supporters, reminded them of that and voted to keep the place open for the rest of the Org.<\/p>\n
Throughout this entire process, I can\u2019t recall ever receiving an actual acknowledgment from a ban supporter that racial injustice is a real issue in the USA.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I was informed at some point, however, The Civil War had nothing to do with slavery.\u00a0\u00a0 This individual maintained his position even after I read him The Cornerstone Speech. \u00a0\u00a0The Circle gave me a series of stunned looks and puzzled faces from that one too. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Circle,\u00a0 as with most other veterans I interact with,\u00a0 embrace our diversity and respect our differences.<\/p>\n
Racial injustice is a real issue in the USA.\u00a0 It has been for ages.\u00a0 The NFL athletes are not the first to point it out, and they\u2019re not likely to be the last.\u00a0\u00a0 It saddens me that a group of veterans, even if generally a narrow majority of a particular demographic, would choose to ban speech they disagree with due to a message they themselves co-opted.\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s several layers of erroneous.\u00a0\u00a0 It does, however,\u00a0 highlight a few things:\u00a0 we still have a lot of work to do as a country,\u00a0 and we are not one cohesive entity but we do treat one another with respect in our veteran community.<\/p>\n
Author\u2019s Note:\u00a0 Further discussions regarding \u2018respect\u2019 involved actual Flag Code items:\u00a0 \u201cThe Flag should never be used as apparel,\u201d\u00a0 \u201cThe flag should never be carried flat or horizontally,\u201d and \u201cNo part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform,\u201d\u00a0 are all things listed under section 8 \u201cRespect for flag\u201d and were all generally dismissed by the pro-ban crowd,\u00a0 despite many of them being in violation of the flag code themselves at the time of the discussion and were using the \u2018disrespect\u2019 angle as their chief argument.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It does add some context overall, but is better as a footnote.\u00a0 Other details, such as the the DoD-NFL partnership, while somewhat relevant overall aren\u2019t really important from a 1st person perspective story.<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Gold Medal Winner \u2013 Personal Experience, Other<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=”Divider” color=”#1c1c1c” show_divider=”on” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” divider_weight=”5px” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n the victims of violence<\/p>\n will no longer be silent<\/p>\n home, in this era of terror<\/p>\n <\/p>\n we take care of our seeds<\/p>\n we provide for their needs<\/p>\n but money is worth more than lives<\/p>\n <\/p>\n children\u2019s deaths yield mother\u2019s tears<\/p>\n while you profit from the fears<\/p>\n go, your safe space awaits you<\/p>\n <\/p>\n you give thoughts and prayers<\/p>\n pics, tweets, likes, and shares<\/p>\n happy that sales will rise<\/p>\n <\/p>\n the time for action was then<\/p>\n and again and again and again<\/p>\n is there a heart within you<\/p>\n <\/p>\n fifteen is a common thread<\/p>\n in both the living and the dead<\/p>\n but you like models not ages<\/p>\n <\/p>\n how tall a pile the bodies be<\/p>\n \u2018fore an ending light can we see<\/p>\n I doubt you\u2019ve been of help thus far<\/p>\n <\/p>\n this is something we can solve<\/p>\n a thing on which you can evolve<\/p>\n and help provide a future for us all<\/p>\n <\/p>\n it is true we all will die<\/p>\n the only question is why<\/p>\n help us achieve it in peace<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”center” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Silver Medal \u2013 Poetry, Other<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=”Divider” color=”#1c1c1c” show_divider=”on” divider_style=”solid” divider_position=”top” hide_on_mobile=”on” divider_weight=”5px” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" (Alone 518)\u00a0 Tribunal Digital Art Gold Medal Winner America is Greater than the Sum of its Parts America is greater than the sum of its parts.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 At times, this can be difficult to see, as everywhere we turn we are consistently reminded of our imperfections.\u00a0 Sometimes it is easy to get lost in those striving […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":26302,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[270,50],"class_list":["post-26385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-va","tag-270","tag-vaart"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Victims of Violence<\/h4>\n