baconman's Blog

Is it too much to ask? I don’t like to ask for things, so I would only do so if it were for something truly important to me. What I would like is for my HOSA advisor, the three other winning members, and myself to go to Dallas, Texas, for the national conference of the Health Occupations Students of America. I know it’s entirely fair, I know that we all deserve it, I know that it would do good for more than just us, and I know that our reason for not going shouldn’t be because it costs too much.

It isn’t as if we were randomly selected. We worked hard and studied for months to compete. We all placed in the top three of our respective categories. I, personally, placed first in the event of medical mathematics. It isn’t just about competing though. This is a rare opportunity for four, inner-city, public school students to travel, not only outside of the city, but into an entirely different region that we, otherwise, might not ever see. It’s a chance to experience new things, meet new people, and see new sights. This is a life changing opportunity for all of us. It shouldn’t simply be thrown away.

Even though we have much to gain from this, we also have a lot to contribute. I believe the most important thing we can contribute is representation. In going to this national conference, not only will we be some of the many students representing Pennsylvania, but we would also be the face of our entire city. Of all of the Philadelphia students, we four are the only ones who can represent this great city. With us there, people all over the country could meet us and see Philadelphia as more than a problematic city with a high crime rate. They could see people who are kind, respectful and, most important of all, loving. The nickname, “city of brotherly love” shouldn’t be replaced by “Killadelphia”. This country was formed on the basis of proper representation. All I ask for is the privilege to exert a right our founding fathers fought for.

I realize that this is expensive, but it seems like a fair trade to me. We get to compete in and experience this conference and in return, we represent our families, our school, and our city as well as we possibly can to the rest of the nation. But maybe my sense of fairness isn’t developed enough yet. Maybe I’m not old enough to understand that life isn’t fair. Maybe I’m too young to truly see something as impossible. That probably is true, but is it necessarily bad? I may be too young to accept the unfairness and injustice in this world, but I’m well more than old enough to fight it.