"All I ask of you is to see me for who I am. Aisha. I spell my name not with a y or an e, but with an i. See me. I live with you. I live near you. I go to your school; I eat in your cafeteria; I take the same classes. Now I am your valedictorian. I want what you want. I want a future." (152)
Awesome! That was pretty cool of Aisha. And a really good speech. Aisha seems to have gotten her head back, but more humbly than before. What she said about seeing her for who she is was very true, not for her only, but for Nadira too. Aisha did a really good job of talking and it seemed not only did she make a speech about herself, but about all the other illegal immigrants as well. As if she were trying to show people that immigrants were exactly the same as them. It was brave of her to go up to a podium and tell everyone that she's an illegal alien. You go... girl...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Great Post Neeli,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you 100%! Great Job! I like how you noted this:
"it seemed not only did she make a speech about herself, but about all the other illegal immigrants as well. As if she were trying to show people that immigrants were exactly the same as them."
I thought that was a very good description of what she was trying to do.
I have a question for you though. Did you see this coming? Was the book predictable?
I loved your ending sentence.
You go girl....
<3,
Celeste
I agree with you! I am so glad she was still considered the valedictorian and spoke a meaningful speech that not only applied to her family but others as well. This paragraph spoke for itself. The future part is very important. It is something that (probably) most kids reach for, dream of, want, is their future.
ReplyDeleteLike Celeste and Sophia, I agree with you as well! I liked how you explained that she was saying the speech for the other illegal immigrants too-that's so true! I'm glad she got up there and gave her speech! Nice work Neeli!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, I don't think this speech was just about her and her family, but how people treat other illegal imm. I also picked that quote, its a good one! It was really cool of Aisha to say that as her valedictorian speech, instead of cheesy stuff about moving on in life and stuff like that :).
ReplyDelete-jena with one n'ah
i really like the quote you chose
ReplyDeletelike everyone else, i thought it was great that Aisha said that stuff, but did anyone else notice that it could have been worded more elegantly for a high school graduation?
i thought it could have
oh well, it was a hard thing to say, and i'm glad she said it
~ari
GREAT post Neeli!I agree with ari. It could have been said a little less brittle. I really liked the points you made.
ReplyDeleteGREAT,
ReplyDeleteI also really enjoyed this scene. It was very powerful. I also agree with you and the others that this was a ggreat speech because she wasn't just speaking of herself but the other illegal emigrants world-wide. It is very possible that their could have been another illegal emmigrant in the audience that really needed to hear that. I'm glad Aisha did that. It was a big step on her part. Bt I'm sure she felt good after. Nice closing. You go...girl...!
~DaVaughn
Brittle? It was a bit short, sorry... yeah i liked her speech a lot. I think that she was really scared and all, but it sure didn't seem like it. Except for when Nadira says that her knees were shaking. I thought it very nice and friendly when she asked Nadira to sit with her. (She's becoming more like a sister. Gasp!)
ReplyDeleteYeah I agree with you Neeli. She did seem to go back to normal quite quickly for having lost her mind a little while back... I liked how you said that she was speaking about every single illegal immigrant, not just her self. that was very true.
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree with you Neeli. I do think that she was or could have been speaking for other immigrants with illegal status. What I do understand is that she was afraid to make the speech, but I do think that she could have been that Aisha that we were so annoyed with. She could have been bold and strong. The end of her speech bothered me when she whispered "Thank you" and she was shaking with tears. Hmm...I don't know. However, you made excellent points. Great job, Neeli.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I think that Aisha probaly felt sick to her stomach and i know if i was going to do something like that i would...well...it would be super scary to tell your whole school and all their family's that your a illegal alien.
ReplyDeleteoh, i also really enjoyed your "go girl" at the end. It put a fun spin on the post. :D
ReplyDeleteWow! That was pretty brave of Aisha wasn't it? It must have taken a LOT of courage! I think that Aisha has an equal amount of courage to Nadira, but she has a different kind. Great job on the post. The "go girl" at the end was one of my favorite parts!
ReplyDeleteLots of people like the end, huh? interesting...
ReplyDeletenice job neeli, it really was a good speech. it was representative for all immigrants. i think she does have her head back on her shoulders, but i think Nadira the one who really put it there.
ReplyDelete