The ORANGE COUNTY STOP THE HATE contest was established by the Jewish Federation of Greater Orange County to promote tolerance and understanding through education.
This year’s topic: Immigration and Refugees: past, current, and future…
Cash prizes of $200 each will be awarded to the winning submissions from grades 6-8 and 9-12. In addition, prizes of $100 each will also be awarded to the teachers of the winning students.
Prompt: Emma Lazarus, from a Jewish family in New York City, wrote a poem called “The New Colossus” about the Statue of Liberty. The poem is now permanently linked with the statue and is known worldwide.
The New Colossus By EMMA LAZARUS
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows worldwide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
This poem prompts us to look at a community in new ways of mindfulness.
Middle School (6-8):
Either in an essay or your own original poem respond to the following prompt:
What would you say if you could write a letter to Emma Lazarus if she were alive today? What would you say to welcome someone to this country?
- Include how being new in the community or school can feel similar to being an immigrant.
- Discuss ways of being welcoming and kind to newcomers.
High School (9-12):
By reflecting on the poem, “The New Colossus,” discuss in your original essay OR through your own original poetry how the message of unconditional welcoming has been complicated throughout American history and with current (more recent) events.
*Please include references from scholarly sources at the end of your essay or poem when appropriate.
This is not a book report. Judges are interested in your personal reflections on the topic.
1. Students must be residents of Orange County, students in grades 6-12 currently attending public or private school or being homeschooled. ELL and MLL students may submit their essay or poem in their primary language. We just ask a sponsoring teacher to also send an English translation.
2. The maximum word count is 1,000 words for grades 6-8, and 1,500 words for grades 9-12.
3. All submissions must:
- have a cover page with your name, grade, school, sponsoring teacher, and teacher contact information
- have a title on the first page of the essay or poem
- be typed, and double-spaced
- be sent as a PDF (PLEASE-DO NOT SEND AS A GOOGLE DOC)
*DO NOT PUT YOUR NAME OR OTHER IDENTIFYING INFORMATION ON the essay or poem itself- ONLY ON THE COVER PAGE.
4. Attach your submission to an email and send it to: zachor@jewishorangeny.org. Your email must contain the following information in the body in order to be considered:
Your full name
School name
Grade Level
Teacher name
Parent/Guardian phone number
Personal email address (not a school email) (yours or parent/guardian)
5. Email must be received NO LATER THAN March 28, 2023
*Please direct questions to Zachor@jewishorangeny.org
6. By entering the Stop Hate Challenge, permission is hereby granted by participants and their parents/guardians to allow the Jewish Federation of Greater Orange County to use their names and submissions in print or internet form.