Visual Art 2nd Place Winner, Safae Bennani
“To see so many young people express a passionate commitment to civil liberties and social justice is inspiring,” said Donna Lieberman, NYCLU executive director. “Each of these winners tackled complex issues with intelligence, clarity and conviction. The NYCLU is proud to be a vehicle for their talent and creativity.”
The awards will be presented to contest winners on Monday, July 26 at the NYCLU's annual Broadway Stands Up for Freedom! benefit concert. Dozens of Broadway's finest - including musical director Seth Rudetsky and leading actors from Hair, Next to Normal, Jersey Boys, Mary Poppins, Finian’s Rainbow, Rent and Passing Strange will take to the stage to salute the students and the NYCLU’s youth programs.
This year 700 students submitted entries – the most in the contest’s history. The submissions were judged in four categories: written word, poetry, visual arts and multimedia.
The contest was open to New York City youth 21 years old and younger. First-prize winners in each category received $500; second-prize winners, $200; and third-prize winners, $75.
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Freedom of Expression Contest: Winners 2010
Visual Art 1st Place Winner, Phyllis Yao
Written Word
1st Place (tie) – Building Homes, Ella Cheng, 16, Queens, Hunter College High School
1st Place (tie) – Metamorphosis, Yuna Park, 16, Bronx, Bronx High School of Science
2nd Place – Silence So Loud, Speaks So Proud, Lily Gellman, 16, Manhattan, The Beacon School
3rd Place – Thank Heaven for Little Girls, Yasmin Kelly, 15, Brooklyn, LaGuardia High School
Poetry
1st Place – Unidentified Identity, Angy Rivera, 19, Flushing, John Jay College/NYS Youth Leadership Council
2nd Place – The Right to Life , Kwesi J. Walker-McKie, 16, LaGuardia High School
3rd Place – Like Cattle, Camonghne Felix, 18, Bronx, Bronx Community High School
Visual Arts
1st Place – Fault, Phyllis Yao, 16, Manhattan, LaGuardia High School
2nd Place – Bound, Safae Bennani, 9th Grade, Bronx, Townsend Harris High School
3rd Place – A Cry for Help…Ignored, Ruben Sandoval, 10th Grade, Queens, Island Academy
Multimedia
1st Place – Stray, David Ceron, 18, Brooklyn, Restart
2nd Place – I Believe, Diorlenny Rodriguez, Richard R. Green High School of Teaching
3rd Place – Objectification of Women in the Music Industry, Zora Kosoff, 9th Grade, Brooklyn, Institute for Collaborate Education.