Tuesday, July 24, 2007

"PHS Student Wins Award in Essay Contest" (The Poughkeepsie Beat; May 10, 2002)

PHS Student Wins Award in Essay Contest
By A. Dakota Kim for The Poughkeepsie Beat

On April 19, Emily O'Neill, a student at Poughkeepsie High School, was honored as the recipient of the Women Sustaining the American Spirit Award. The award was sponsored by The Ninth Judicial District Committee to Promote Gender Fairness in the Courts and the Bar Association, and was given to those who wrote the best essays for Women's History Month. "Women's History Month is a time to acknowledge all the women who came before us and to celebrate the trailblazers who fought for equality and changed the world," said O'Neill.

Each essay writer was told to describe how the events of Sept. 11 have heightened his or her awareness of women's issues in the U.S. and abroad. O'Neill chose to write about the history of feminism in America and the plight of women in Afghanistan.

"Because of the sacrifices and struggles of women who came before us, women in the United States can be...anything they want to be," wrote O'Neill in her essay. "But even with all the progress we have made...there is still much to do to achieve gender equality."

"We need to lobby on behalf of the women in Afghanistan and fight to make sure they can have a sense of identity and are able to earn a living. They also need to be allowed to participate in governmental politics so that they can really stand up and speak out," said O'Neill.

O'Neill's essay was selected by a panel of judges for first prize in the freshman/sophomore category. The pool of 90 essays were submitted by students from 20 different schools in the Dutchess, Rockham, Putnam, and Westchester counties.

At the breakfast honoring the winners, O'Neill and others read their essays in front of members of the Committee to Promote Gender Fairness in the Courts, judges from the Ninth Judicial District, and Bar Association members.

"The essays are very insightful. Emily's was very well-written and thoughtful," said Judge Terry Ruderman, chair of the committee. "We hope that we've encouraged the students to think about some issues they might not always think about."

"The Committee to Promote Gender Fairness is really important," said O'Neill. "The committee fights for equality, addresses concerns and problems, and raises aspirations and opportunities for women."

Last summer, O'Neill attended the Girls' Leadership Workshop at the Eleanor Roosevelt Center at Val-Kill, where for nine days she participated in a series of workshops, many of which were focused on women's issues and history.

"The program enhanced my self-awareness and I learned a lot about oppression against women," said O'Neill. "It was really the place where I learned who I was. Eleanor Roosevelt is a true inspiration to young women and the program is wonderful."

O'Neill said she intends to go into journalism and is inspired by Gloria Steinem as a journalist and the founder of Ms. Magazine.

"She has been such a great leader in the late 20th century women's movement."

The New York State Committee to Promote Gender Fairness in the Courts was founded in 1986 as a method of examining how women are treated in all aspects of the judicial system, as judges, attorneys, and clients. The committee was created after a statewide task force revealed a need for improvement of gender equality within the courts. The Ninth Judicial District's committee is an offshoot of the state committee.

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