ust a few weeks ago, Dwayne Campbell and his grandmother were perusing the weekly Enrichment Programs Blast when an exciting idea emerged. Although Dwayne is interested in becoming a pharmacist or anesthesiologist, his grandmother encouraged him to try something outside his comfort zone: the Thomas & Woods Foundation’s MLK Day Speech Contest. At first Dwayne was not sure about participating because he had never shared his writing so publicly before, but his grandmother knew that his public speaking and writing skills would shine in a competition like this. After some discussion, Dwayne decided to sign-up, and he knew he wanted to give it his all.

According to the Thomas & Woods Foundation, the MLK Day Speech Contest “empowers high school students to write and perform their very own speeches before a live panel of judges.” Although the speeches that students perform are not necessarily related to Dr. King, they are meant to display the type of powerful energy of sharing one’s voice that Dr. King was known for. When Dwayne signed up for the contest, he was assigned a speech coach who helped him develop his thoughts and refine his performance. He was asked to respond to the following question: “What has resilience in 2020 taught you?” He used the weekend to practice and make sure that his piece had its own style and rhythm. Then Monday came, and it was time to perform.

Dwayne’s main goal in his speech was to offer a new perspective on the idea of what resilience really is. In his own words, he loves to “flip an idea on its head,” so he wanted to describe resilience in a new way. Instead of discussing how the challenges of 2020 have made many people stronger, Dwayne explained how the idea of resilience can sometimes do more harm than good. From his perspective, because there is often an expectation to get right back up when we face tough times, we are less allowed to be sensitive, vulnerable, and process our pain. Dwayne argued that this can be harmful, and that we should let ourselves be human. He delivered his message passionately, and it resonated well with the judges and his fellow participants.

Dwayne described his experience participating in the contest as empowering. He used to want to stay silent because he did not want to give people the opportunity to judge his ideas, but now he realizes the power of his words. He loved the sense of community and celebration of Black excellence that developed in the virtual contest space. Dwayne encourages students who may feel unsure about sharing their voice to participate in this contest in the future. He was accompanied and supported by several other Carver students, including third place winner Dea Carter and finalist Dennis Chen.

Since participating in the contest, Dwayne has continued to write poetry and analyze pieces of literature. He wants everyone in the Carver community to know that “Your words matter. Your voice matters. Be yourself, and that’s all anyone can ask of you!” Dwayne looks forward to bringing his story-telling abilities into whichever profession he ultimately chooses. He is interested in attending Drexel or Temple in the future. In his free time, he enjoys participating in crew and eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.