Teens Speak Out on the Election

Ari, 15: I am worried and baffled by Trump’s re-election. I don’t have citizenship and am in the U.S. as part of a program that gives Ukrainian refugees parole for two years at a time. Will Trump end this program? Trump being a fan of Putin makes me worry about my home.

Reconnecting with My Mother Tongue

by Anonymous

“What are your classes this year?” my mom asked in Mandarin, a few weeks before 9th grade started.  I showed her my schedule and told her I had biology, one of my favorite science classes. “What is that?”  “It’s.. It’s like a class where you study animals,” I explained in a mix of Mandarin and English.

A Curly Korean Complex

by Oscar Scribner

The moment I had been dreading had arrived. What was usually a mundane part of the day I’d sleep through was now a moment of palpable tension. The inquisitor was making her way down the list and was approaching…  “Oscar Scr-binder?”

War Transformed Our Family

by V. T.

Growing up, everyone in my family was afraid of my mom. When she got angry, she would turn into a tiger. She’d scream loudly, and her voice turned throaty and scary. Sometimes, she even hit my younger sister and me.  Dad would also avoid mom when she wasn’t in a good mood.

Home in My Heart

by Arina Limarieva

When I was 5, I had lived my whole life in Luhansk, Ukraine. Then, in April 2014, Russia  invaded Luhansk and another nearby region, Donetsk. Russia declared them independent states and renamed them Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic.   These name changes are part of how the Russian government tries to erase the Ukrainian identities of people who live there.

More Than a Stereotype  

by Justin Sosa

Growing up as a Mexican-American, I’ve grown used to people reducing me to a stereotype (one teacher confidently called me “Jose”). I’ve even experienced people assuming that, because my family is Mexican, we’re criminals—that we’re a harm to the economy and to society and that we leech off of the US government.