Category: Perspectives Essay Competition

  • Love, in Extremes and in Between

    Love, in Extremes and in Between

    Written by Lorece Harris. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. – I used to think love was loud. I grew up in a Latino household, where everyone had an opinion and we wanted you to know about it. That meant when we fought, it was earth shattering, and when we celebrated, it was the feeling of unconditional…

  • Meet Me at the Intersection of Our Stories

    Meet Me at the Intersection of Our Stories

    Written by Eleni Theodoropoulos. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. – The worst person at a party is the one who never asks any questions. I don’t mean the quiet person—their inner voice is sometimes too loud and distracting to allow for it. I mean the person so content with their own story that they do not…

  • American Identity and Chinese Traditions

    American Identity and Chinese Traditions

    Written by Kevin Chen. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. – “Kevin, zhù rén wéi lè.” Delight in helping others. “Kevin, you should always quán lì yǐ fù.” Always be fully committed. “Kevin, tòng gǎi qián fēi.” Seek to improve your character. My family taught me Chinese idioms at an early age. These phrases were conventional wisdoms…

  • The Two Ahmeds

    The Two Ahmeds

    Written by Tarek Zaher. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss. In 2007, six years after the horrific 9/11 attacks and the resultant cultural backlash against Muslims in America, just about the worst thing possible that can happen to a nine-year-old Muslim boy trying to survive socially in rural East Texas happens. Jeff Dunham, a famous ventriloquist and…

  • The Mythical Latina

    The Mythical Latina

    Written by Ariane Stier. Graphic by Peyton Cabaniss.   We have all met her, in some form or fashion: the media’s mythical Latina. She has a bombshell hourglass figure, light tan skin, long dark hair, and a thick accent from an unspecified foreign country. She might be a maid, and most likely she is an…