[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 60 (Wednesday, May 13, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E854]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING NEIL RHODES WINNING ESSAY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. SCOTT McINNIS

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 13, 1998

  Mr. McINNIS. Mr. Speaker, please include the attached text in the 
Congressional Record.

                     ``My Voice in our Democracy''


         1997-98 vfw voice of democracy scholarship competition

                   (By Neil Rhodes, Colorado Winner)

       A few years ago, when I was about eleven years old, I was 
     profoundly affected by the chronicle of a young Jewish girl 
     during the second world war: a girl who, while hiding out 
     from the Nazis, wrote in the red-checkered diary she had 
     received for her thirteenth birthday; a martyr who was 
     eventually discovered and sent to her death in a 
     concentration camp; a visionary whose diary writings 
     encompassed the plight of millions around the world. That 
     little girl was Anne Frank.
       One of the final entries in Anne's red-checkered diary 
     proclaimed the desperation of a nation without democracy. It 
     read: ``ideals, dreams, and cherished hopes rise within us 
     only to meet the horrible truth and be shattered . . .
       At the young age I was, this was the first real connection 
     I had ever experienced with the evils of tyranny. Since then 
     I've encountered a multitude of other stories and situations 
     that have increased my awareness of democracy.
       Like the time I visited a small holocaust museum and spoke 
     with Mr. Kelen--a survivor of the holocaust himself; or the 
     time I traveled just across the Mexican border, and witnessed 
     first-hand the crippling poverty caused by government 
     corruption; the time I sat glued to the television, my eyes 
     locked on the image of a young Chinese boy facing certain 
     death as he stood in the path of an oncoming military tank.
       Every new experience helped shape my thoughts, mold my 
     perspective, and strengthen my voice as an American citizen. 
     I have come to realize just how fortunate I am--how fortunate 
     we all are--to possess the light of democracy.
       I've learned that democracy is priceless and powerful. 
     Priceless, because our basic rights are stained with the 
     blood of millions who fought to gain them. Democracy also has 
     boundless power: quite simply, the power to shatter the 
     chains of bondage forever.
       But as we live our lives in freedom we must remember the 
     horrible truth that Anne Frank wrote about. The horrible 
     truth is that there are still millions of people living in 
     the darkness of oppression. For those not yet experiencing 
     liberty, we must continue the battle. If we believe in our 
     own sovereignty, that is our duty. The Declaration of 
     Independence does not say ``All Americans are created equal'' 
     but that ``All men''--all around the world--``are created 
     equal.'' Thus, we cannot simply work to continue our own 
     democratic system; we must bring that system to the rest of 
     the world. Only then will the visions of our forefathers be 
     completed.
       In the social and political arena every American has a 
     voice--a platform from which to speak. In many parts of the 
     globe that could not be farther from the truth. Anne Frank 
     never had a voice. I, however, do. I stand before you now, 
     and I speak on behalf of those who couldn't and those who 
     still cannot.
       My voice in our democracy is the reflection of a free 
     person; my voice pays tribute to the thousands who died for 
     the cause of liberty; my voice cries out an urging for the 
     respect of our nation and an offering of hope for the future.
       Yes, even in the midst of the cruelest oppression, hope is 
     one thing that can never be destroyed. Because, you see, I 
     never finished the quotation by Anne Frank that I gave 
     earlier. Here is the quote in its entirety: ``ideals, dreams, 
     and cherished hopes rise within us only to meet the horrible 
     truth and be shattered . . . yet in spite of everything I 
     still believe that people really are good at heart.''
       Anne Frank's devotion to the human spirit should serve as 
     an example to all of us, and especially to Americans. 
     Progress in the world must begin with you and me. I would 
     hope that one day all Americans would understand that with 
     strength, compassion, diligence, and the fortitude of our 
     voices, we have the ability to change democracy from an 
     ideal, a dream, and a cherished hope . . . into a powerful 
     and permeating reality.

     

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