[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 3]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 4387]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         ESSAY BY LAUREN GROVER

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. PETE OLSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 14, 2016

  Mr. OLSON. Mr. Speaker, I am privileged to interact with some of the 
brightest students in the 22nd Congressional District who serve on my 
Congressional Youth Advisory Council. I have gained much by listening 
to the high school students who are the future of this great nation. 
They provide important insight from across the political spectrum that 
sheds a light on the concerns of our younger constituents. Giving voice 
to their priorities will hopefully instill a better sense of the 
importance of being an active participant in the political process. 
Many of the students have written short essays on a variety of topics 
and I am pleased to share them with my House colleagues.
  Lauren Grover attends Clear Springs High School in League City, 
Texas. The essay topic is: Select an important event that has occurred 
in the past year and explain how that event has changed/shaped our 
country.

       In this past year there have been numerous significant 
     events that have transpired and while many of them have 
     shaped our country as a whole; I believe that there is one in 
     particular that has changed our country by stating something 
     that for a while has been suppressed. The Supreme Court case 
     Obergefell vs. Hodges or as many people know it, the 
     legalization of same sex marriage. While many people believe 
     that it has caused the people to choose sides, I strongly 
     believe that it has actually allowed people to come together 
     in different ways and has slowly started to allow for more 
     tolerance. Before this case, many people believed that 
     implementing rules such as ``don't ask, don't tell'' would 
     take care of awkward situations but by allowing the LGBT 
     community to have legal marriage opportunities it will bring 
     a new outlook for a new generation. This takes equality to 
     the next level by allowing anyone and everyone to feel that 
     they have the same rights as everyone else. As the younger 
     generations become older the tolerance of the entire country 
     will be greater. In the beginning the freedom was strictly 
     meant for certain people which allowed for slavery and 
     segregation which was later understood as being wrong to look 
     down upon a person because of their skin color, then it was 
     woman's rights which later turned into woman becoming an 
     important role model and no longer living in a ``man's 
     world'', and now the right to choose who will be able to love 
     who comes into play and allowing everyone to have the same 
     opportunities to be who they want to be. Everyone has the 
     right to choose which path they want to travel without the 
     fear that society will not approve of their decision. This 
     country has had many ups and downs in the fight for freedom 
     but the shape is becoming less strict and more accepting. Not 
     only has the country become more tolerant but also open 
     minded. The world is changing and the country is moving along 
     with it. The amount of freedom given is in the hands of the 
     people and it is their choice what happens with it.

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