Today however, action was taken. It might not have been tangible action but it was so much more powerful than a visible change. Never did I think that the most powerful part of today would come in the form of seven young girls walking onto the stage. These young girls are a part of the Tanana 4H club and their leader introduced them and talked a lot about how important it is to start change within children. Their community is still reeling from a fatal shooting that killed two Alaskan State Troopers last year and how this tragedy motivated these girls to make a change for a better future. Their leader said how if even one child is drug and alcohol free that when they grow older and have children it means that even one baby might be born without alcohol or drugs in their system. Each of the girls on the stage are drug and alcohol free; this means that a future generation of babies born will one day be born with clean systems. Again and again she reinforced the knowledge that it is not too late to change or to speak out about hard issues to take a step toward change.
Once she was finished, she turned the microphone over to the girls. The first few gave great speeches about how their lives have been affected by drugs and alcohol in their community. I was moved by their strength to talk about some of the things they have gone through in their lives. However, I got chills as the next young woman began her speech. This brave and strong seventeen year old girl got up and spoke of being a victim of sexual abuse. She talked about the importance of taking a stand against predators, even if they are related to you. She urged victims to break their silence. I was amazed by her courage and yet saddened to know that are so many victims who do not feel safe enough to speak out against their attacker. After her speech, these girls took a pledge to stop suicide in Alaska and the audience stood with them and took this pledge as well.Throughout the rest of the day, I thought about her speech and how brave she was to get up there. Not only did these girls come to stand in front of a large group of people to share their stories, but they were on camera as well. The EY Conference is being aired across the country, and these girls were well aware of this. They are so invested in making a change for their future and the future of their loved ones and community that they were willing to speak of the injustices in their own community. I commend them for standing up and speaking out against the wrong-doing even when their community is as small as it is. Not only were they speaking for natives but the young woman who spoke about sexual abuse was talking to victims everywhere. Please listen to her as she urges you to speak out, if not for yourself then do it for your younger siblings, cousins, nieces or nephews. Get up. Stand up. Protect the children.
* In researching a fatal shooting that occurred in Tanana last year (which the young girl speaks about in the video), I was able to find a video showcasing two of the girls giving their speeches. It is worth your time to watch, these girls deserve your time. I also attached the article which discusses the shooting in Tanana last year.
http://www.adn.com/video/video-tanana-alaska-4-h-group-speaks-out
http://www.adn.com/slideshow/photos-two-alaska-state-troopers-killed-tanana-shooting
**The picture with the word cards is their stance on the issue of legalizing marijuana use in Alaska. Due to the extremely negative impact drugs have been in their community, these young girls urge all Alaskans to vote against legalizing marijuana.
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