Seven finalists performed speeches inspired by Martin Luther King Jr. about mental health, alcoholism, grief, and more during the annual Sophomore Speech Showcase in the Lasker Auditorium, Friday, Jan. 23.
All sophomore English students write an annual speech to inspire positive change and present to their class. The seven finalists were chosen from a group of elected class representatives by a panel of English teachers.
This year, finalists Gina Franchi, Nacheli Marinez, Eva Morgan, Olivia Roche, Wes Sundram, Nicholas Welstead, and Alyssa Yasuhara delivered their speeches in front of the sophomore class. Each class representative also gave a brief summary of their speech at the end of the showcase.
Marinez began the showcase with her speech, “Be Aware”, which emphasized the dangers of the app Discord.
Marinez described a Discord server that she had stumbled across. “The server was filled with child sexual abuse material, exploitation, manipulation, extortion, grooming, and more,” she said.
Marinez emphasized the importance of reporting servers with inappropriate content.
Franchi delivered her speech, titled “Grief Doesn’t Disappear, It Changes”, describing her experience of losing a parent at eight years old.
According to Franchi, in the United States, an average of 1,089 children lose a parent every day.
Sundram’s speech, titled “When Silence Kills”, discussed suicide among males and the stigma around talking to other people about mental health.
Sundram urged people to support their friends and family, and have emotional conversations with others.
“If you’re struggling, say something. I know it’s hard. I know you feel like there’s no end, like you’re drowning,” Sundram said. “I’ve been there, and I promise it gets better,”
Following Sundram’s speech was “Changing the Conversation About Alcoholism”, in which Roche spoke about the effects of living with an alcoholic, detailing her own experience with her father, who struggles with alcoholism.
“I urge you to help those who are struggling, be proud of those who’ve recovered, and to stop using alcoholism as an insult,” Roche said.
Morgan addressed the recent budget cuts in cancer research, which impacts her own family as well as many others, in her speech, “Beyond the Budget”.
Morgan finished her speech with the final line, “Hope deserves a budget.”
In Yasuhara’s speech, titled “Freedom to Learn”, she spoke about banned books and the government’s censorship of what can be taught in schools.
Yasuhara further encouraged people to read banned books.
The final speech of the showcase, “A Better Measure of Strength” by Welstead, discussed toxic masculinity, misogyny, and their effects. In his speech, he redefined what strength means for men.
“Real strength is not silence. Real strength is not dominance. Real strength is respect, accountability, and compassion,” Welstead said.
According to Principal Henry Turner, he loves the sophomore speech project because English teachers encourage their students to inspire change.
According to Morgan, she hoped to share her personal story and connect with people who experienced something similar to her.
“Maybe there’s someone in the crowd that’ll resonate with what I’m saying and appreciate it,” Sundram said.
