DEMOCRACY IN ACTION
LÔØI GIÔÙI THIEÄU:
Vaøo muøa heø naêm 1996, do söï baûo trôï vaø toå chöùc cuûa American Legion Auxiliairy, moãi tröôøng trung hoïc trong toaøn tieåu bang California ñaõ ñeà cöû moät nöõ sinh xuaát saéc ñeå tham döï Ñaïi Hoäi California Girls State. Gaàn baûy traêm nöõ sinh ñaõ taïm truù moät tuaàn leã taïi Pitzer College ( thaønh phoá Clarmont, nam California) vaø sinh hoaït veà theå cheá daân chuû vaø toå chöùc coâng quyeàn taïi Hoa Kyø. California Girls State ñaõ tuyeån choïn hai nöõ sinh ñaïi bieåu ñeå cuøng vôùi ñaïi bieåu cuûa moïi tieåu bang khaùc treân toaøn laõnh thoå Hoa Kyø veà tham döï Ñaïi Hoäi Girls Nation ôû Washington, DC. Moät trong hai nöõ sinh California ñöôïc tuyeån choïn laø coâ Phan Xuaân An Bình, thieáu nöõ Vieät Nam vaø laø aùi nöõ cuûa moät ñoàng höông Bình Thuaän oâng baø Döôïc Só Phan Xuaân Löû. Trong baøi Democracy In Action, coâ An Bình ñaõ keå laïi sô löôïc veà nhöõng sinh hoaït trong hai Ñaïi Hoäi California Girls State vaø Girls Nation cuønng cô hoäi gaëp Toång Thoáng Hoa Kyø Bill Clinton.
Chuùng toâi thieát nghó raèng ñaây khoâng nhöõng chæ laø moät vinh döï cuûa caù nhaân coâ Phan Xuaân An Bình maø coøn laø moät nieàm haõnh dieän cuûa gia ñình, cuûa moïi ñoàng höông Bình Thuaän noùi rieâng vaø Coäng Ñoàng Vieät Nam tò naïn noùi chung.
Anbinh Xuan Phan is a senior at North High School in Torrance, California. She is a Vietnamese American who came to the United States with her parents in 1980. She is an active youth who participates and is a leader in such organisations as Key Club, Academic Decathlon, Student Council, Volleyball, among others. In the summer of 1996 she was chosen to represent the state of California and meet President Clinton in Washington, DC. Anbinh was selected for a program called Girls Nation, a nationally sponsored event by the American Legion Auxiliary. In the article below she discusses how she was chosen, a brief itinerary, and her experience in Washington, DC.
DEMOCRACY IN ACTION
This past summer I had the most intellectually exciting experience of my life. For the week of June 6th I shared my life with almost seven hundred of the brightest, most compassionate and vivacious minds in the state of California: the participants of California Girls State. Each year almost seven hundred high schools send one of their best students to Girls State. Throughout the week, I was selected as the Party Platform Chair, and Editor in Chief of the Newspaper. At Pitzer College, in the city of Clarmont I discussed a multifaceted array of other state and federal issues with other concerned students. On the day of the governor’s inauguration, I was both humbled and honored to be standing before my fellow Girls Staters’, chosen to be one of two Girls Nation Senators to represent the state of California at Girls Nation in Washington, DC.
As a senator, I was to write a bill of nation significance and present to all other Girls Nation Senators in our senate sessions. The state bills would be sent through committee and senate floor readings, and be thoroughly debated. Bills that passed three crucial readings would then be forwarded to President Clinton on our much anticipated visit to the White House. Ideas bustled in my head as my heart beat with excitement. I enthusiastically decided to write a bill on environmental education. I was beginning to feel concerned about the effects of human actions on the ecological environment and thus felt passionately about promoting public awareness through interactive community based programs.
In order to write my bill effectively, I contacted many eclectic sources. This opportunity for research thoroughly enthralled me. I contacted the EPA, went to federal depositoiries, and contacted sources in Sacremento, to educate myself on previous bill and resolution and to seek counsel on passing legislation. I went to sectional Audubon meetings and asked my Youth Advisor, and a local Assemblywoman for advice. After my research was completed and my bill meticulously written, I felt eager and prepared to present my ideas for the bill’s stipulations, enforcement, funding, sponsorship, and effective dates in Washington, DC.
While in Washington, for the week of July 13th -20th , I listened to excellent guest speakers and visited many historic national monuments. I saw a Wreath Laying Ceremony at the Arlington National Cemetery, visited the Vietnam, Korean, Lincoln, and Washington Memorials ; I even saw a play at the Kennedy Performing Arts Center. It was a very emotional and exciting week as I toured the Capital. I had the honor of meeting Senator Boxer, and Senator Feinstein and I even had the privilege of seeing Congress in session.
At Girls Nation I received the invaluable experience of discussing federal issues in the senate, through the usage of strict parliamentary procedure, as well as in the dining halls, and bathrooms on a casual basis. The atmosphere was intense as the senators debated and deliberated over the pros and the cons of each bill and resolution. I was very excited when my bill on environmental education passed. Only three out of forty-seven bills passed in the 1996 Senate Session. The entire experience was very rewarding. I felt fortunate to meet ninety-three exceptionally bright minds from all over the United States. We gathered together to exchange opinions, to share lives, and to develop life long friendships !
On July 18, 1996, I had the honor of presenting my bill to President of the United States, Mr. William Jefferson Clinton. I feel that the most exciting part of the trip was having the opportunity to meet President Clinton. He greeted us in the East Room of the White House and gave a passionated speech on the social issues facing the youth of tomorrow. He challenged us, as the leaders of the future, to help mitigate the burdens of society, by becoming involved and by educating ourselves. I listened to him eagerly, and happily recalled that President Clinton had participated in Boys Nation when he was my age and had the opportunity to meet the President Kennedy through this very same program.
I later spoke to President Clinton and thanked him for upholding the democracy in this country. I discussed the impacts of being a Vietnamese American, the challenges and goals that my family had faced in order to come to and succeed in America. Just before he went back into the White House, he particularly stopped and shook my hand again and look directly at me and said, "Thank you for what you said. I will remember it." Then he turned and walked into the White House; My heart jumped. Everyone gathered around me and asked about what I had said to the President. Excitedly, I told them about how I felt about democracy and the opportunities it had given me. My parents and I were boat people from Vietnam who had tasted the bittersweet glory of opportunity and achievement in this nation. Democracy, I reiterated, had taken me where I was presently.
Through this invaluable encounter I have learned about the diverse geographical cultures of this vast nation, and about the importance of youth in government. At Nation I used my mind and my words to defend my beliefs and articulate my thoughts and opinions. Within the span of a week I had met many brillant people, public officials, and many concerned citizens. These passionate individuals inspired me and motivated me to share my ideas and take futher action with in my community.
This experience has helped me realize the gifts of democracy, and the power of the individual; My eyes are now open to the issues that affect our world locally, nationally, And globally. While at Girls Nation I learned that our democratic system can truly make an impact on the lives that we lead and make a significant difference in the issues that we face daily. Being in an environment of eternal idealism and hope has helped me to understand that we, as people, must unite in our determination to help end social injustice, and humanitarian neglect. I hope to someday use my knowledge to benifit society, and plant seeds of hope by serving in the Peace Corps and the United Nations. In this world, concerned citizens can truly, and do improve the world that we live in.
(Trích Ñaëc San Bình Thuaän 1997)
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