WE Day 2018 took place in Inglewood, California on April 19th. The event motivates kids to do their part of service to communities and the rest of the world. By earning their way into the event, these students have demonstrated how willing they are to do what is right for their generation. The kids of the WE generation have proven themselves to be capable of enhancing the lives they will be living in as adults, through their voices.
During the event, I was inspired by various young girls who intend to change the way they perceive themselves. Dancer and model Maddie Ziegler introduced my favorite performance of the event. A poem titled, “A Letter To My Future Daughter” was read by a high school student named Grace, and she was accompanied by the Carmel High School Dance Troupe, who danced beautifully to violin music.
Females nowadays spend a lot of their time comparing themselves to others and feel a great amount of pressure to conform to society’s expectations of beauty. There is now a greater hope for girl power through this promotion of self love. By reading a poem intended for the generation that follows ours, women of all ages are showing that there can be change if WE initiate it.
These are some of my favorite lines read from this poem that spanned a beautiful 4-minute performance:
“I have met thousands of girls in my life with love to give and not one of them gave that love to herself…When I asked if you could look like anyone in the entire world who would it be, Not one of those girls said: I am completely happy looking like me.”
“And it’s not just the magazines or the media its got less to do with the beautiful women on TV and even more to do with how your mother responds when you tell her you look fat and how your best friend comforts you when you tell her you look ugly. We have been taught that self hate is normal.”
“A letter to my future daughter: hating yourself is not normal, diets are not normal, laxatives and miracle weight loss isn’t, photo shopped women on the covers of fashion magazines are not normal.”
“Letter to my future daughter: Love yourself, unconditionally, passionately and happily. When I ask you if your could be anyone else who would it be, I hope you say ‘no mom i’m completely happy being me.”
This is just a taste of the powerful message this beautiful poem intends to convey for everyone. I felt most inspired during this particular performance and it seemed like the rest of the arena felt the same way. The Forum erupted in applause and it may have been the stand out moment of the day. Witnessing this poem read by a girl, younger than myself, made me hopeful that the movement towards self love will continue to grow. Be sure to watch this amazing performance and the other memorable moments when WE day airs on television, August 17th on ABC.