Over eighty years ago, a 13-year-old girl in Amsterdam named Anne Frank sat down and wrote her first entry in a red-checkered diary. Today, Anne has become the most famous young author of all time, and her diary, published in 1952 as The Diary of a Young Girl, is one of the most widely read books in the world. Translated into more than 70 languages, it is seen as a symbol of the nearly 1.5 million Jewish children who perished during the Holocaust.
An astute author and editor, Anne’s carefully chosen words helped shape her legacy. Her diary is a testament to why the voices of young people matter.
The Anne Frank Day Your Story Matters Contest is designed and judged by members of the AFLA board. For this year's contest students ages 12 to 18 were asked to choose one of the three pre-selected quotations from Anne Frank's diary, reflect on her words, and answer the prompt in essay format.
Students also had an option to select a quotation from the diary and express how the quotation inspired them in some way or caused them to see the world in a different light using an essay format.
Here are the eight student winners of the 2024 Anne Frank Day Your Story Matters Contest and their winning essays prefaced by the quotation selected to use as the prompt.
Saturday, October 30, 1943
l have to become a good person on my own, without anyone to serve as a model or advise me, but it will make me stronger in the end.
Do you agree with this? Should young people follow the examples of others or forge their own paths?
Saturday, October 30, 1943
To be honest, I can't imagine how anyone could say: "I'm weak," and then stay that way. If you know that about yourself, why not fight it, why not develop your character? The answer has always been: "Because it's much easier not to!”
Have you ever experienced a time when it was easier to give up, but you persevered instead?
Saturday, July 15, 1944
Deep down, the young are lonelier than the old.
Do you agree with this? Why or why not?
Mila San Filippo (13)
Daniel Webster Middle School
To be honest, I can't imagine how anyone could say: ‘I'm weak,’ and then stay that way. If you know that about yourself, why not fight it, why not develop your character? The answer has always been: ‘Because it's much easier not to!’-- Saturday, October 30, 1943
Julia Kang (14)
Marlborough School
l have to become a good person on my own, without anyone to serve as a model or advise me, but it will make me stronger in the end.
-- Saturday, October 30, 1943
William Agner (14)
The Waverly School
Deep down, the young are lonelier than the old. -- Saturday, July 15, 1944
Tal Altman (15)
Windward School
Look at how a single candle can both defy and define darkness.*
Lizzy Portillo (18)
Theodore Roosevelt Senior High
I have to become a good person on my own, without anyone to serve as a model or advise me, but it will make me stronger in the end.
-- Saturday, October 30, 1943
Sarah Brennan (18)
Mayfield Senior School
l have to become a good person on my own, without anyone to serve as a model or advise me, but it will make me stronger in the end.
-- Saturday, October 30, 1943
Stella Keyes (16)
Mayfield Senior School
To be honest, I can't imagine how anyone could say "I'm weak," and then stay that way. if you know that about yourself, why not fight it, why not develop your character? The answer has always been: because it's much easier not to! -- April 25, 2024
Liza Davitaia (16)
The School of Los Angeles
To be honest, I can't imagine how anyone could say "I'm weak," and then stay that way. if you know that about yourself, why not fight it, why not develop your character? The answer has always been: because it's much easier not to!
-- April 25, 2024
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