English Speech Final

The United Nations Children Fund defines child soldiers as “any child—girl or boy—under  eighteen years of age, who is part of any kind of regular or irregular armed force or armed group in any capacity.” Today, almost 300,000 children are involved in combat in worldwide conflicts. Children are seen as perfect for the role of soldiers. They are easily influenced and manipulated, they’re vulnerable because of intimidation, but they’re also usually daring, especially when using drugs. Children are used as scouts, messengers, minesweepers, bomb-makers, suicide bombers, and are often forced to maim and kill their relatives and anyone else they know. Girls are also used in conflict, but to different extremes. They’re usually taken as mistresses by the army leaders and are highly subjected to sexual abuse.

Here in America, we do everything possible to keep our children safe. This generation—all of us sitting in this classroom right now—we’re the children; we’re the future. So why aren’t we protecting all the children of the world? We think our lives are so hard here with school work, drama with friends, maybe a new job? We have it easy. We have the opportunity to go to school. We have the option of making new friends. We have the freedom to find a working job to get paid. These children who become victims of war don’t even get a childhood. Most of these children walk miles each day to seek protection in a refugee home. We’re able to go home and lay on the couch after school and watch tv. Meanwhile, children all over the world are fighting for their lives. When we get tired, we’re able to go get in bed and sleep. If a child in places such as Liberia, Uganda, Burundi, Colombia, The Democratic Republic of Congo gets tired could be abducted from their homes—kidnapped in the middle of the night by strange men in army uniforms. They force the child to kill or injure their loved ones and to then leave and take part in the war. How is this fair? How are we letting this happen? It’s in different countries far away, but that doesn’t mean we’re exempt from doing anything about it. We have to stand up and fight for us—for the children of the world. If children were being abducted and used in war here, we would do something about it. We wouldn’t just sit back and feel sorry for them. So why aren’t we doing something about these children?

            Being a victim of war is more than enough trauma for anyone in a lifetime. But after the war is over, it’s not over. Experts say “the prospects for a lasting peace are hurt by large populations of psychologically scarred, demobilized child soldiers.” So in parts of Africa, Asia, and South America, there’s a high risk for long-term instability. Here, children have education, shelter, and nutrition. But these child soldiers are sucked into ongoing wars, resulting in post-traumatic stress disorder and the repercussions of what they have experienced affect their ability to grow and create healthy relationships with others. When they grow up to be the future of their countries, how are they supposed to overcome that instability? This problem isn’t just a here-and-now issue. This will affect the future of countries, the future of children, and the future of our world. There are so many people out there trying to help, but they can only do so much. We all have to come together and act as a united force to stop this heinous crime. It’s time to get up and do something about these suffering children.

            Whether it’s joining an organization that aids children who are involved in war or simply raising awareness about what children have to live through, go out and do something. Make a difference. Make a change in the world. We all long for peace, but how can we possibly do that if we’re not helping make peace? In what kind of world do we sit back and watch children lose their lives? Are we so self-centered that we can’t reach out to help children that have no childhood? We have to stop children from being abused, corrupted, abducted, and killed. I believe that we can make a difference. I believe that we, children ourselves, can make a difference in our fellow brothers and sisters’ lives. This generation is what will become the future, and the generation after that will reflect upon us. We have to make a change. We have to step in to make a difference. I know some of you will go home and completely forget about this speech, but I hope that at least some of you will hear what I’m saying and help me make a difference. These children need our help. And I hope you’re willing to stand with me, to be a voice for them, and to potentially change their lives.