Filipina teen in Saipan tells Obama: 'There is much work to do'

GARAPAN, Saipan – When Dayanara M. Flores, 13, took the stage to deliver her winning piece at the Martin Luther King Jr. Day elocution contest, there was no doubt in the audience’s mind that she deserved the award. Flores, daughter of overseas Filipino worker (OFW) Oscar Flores of Pangasinan and Mariquita Flores of Tarlac, bested other students in expounding on the theme, “What would Martin Luther King Jr. say?" The theme was intended for public and private school students to express their views about the victory of Barack Obama as the first black president of the United States, and its relevance to Martin Luther King Jr. Day which was commemorated for the third time in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) on Jan. 19. In her piece, Flores said King would have told Obama: “I am reminding you, our president, that there is so much work to do to alleviate the suffering and injustice being done to colored people." But she said progress has been achieved in terms of giving equal treatment and opportunities to colored people and that many blacks have become successful in their endeavors. “Yes, the dreams of equality, social justice, and fraternity have not been fully achieved and you the president have a long way to go to make it a reality," said Flores in her piece which took her three weeks to prepare and memorize with the help of her family. Flores, an eighth grader at Hopwood Junior High School, said with Obama’s leadership and with support from people, “we could unite and find solutions to the crisis besieging our country today." "I have a clear message to all the leaders of the world that attaining lasting peace is not an easy task. I do not believe that conflicts could be solved by violence and war, but by diplomacy and peaceful means. My dream for all the people of the world is to get to the promised land where there is equality, justice, brotherhood and economic stability. Is this possible to attain? President Obama, I am quoting your words when you said, ‘Yes, America is a place where all things are possible’," Flores said in her piece. In an interview with GMANews.TV on Tuesday afternoon, Flores said she was “very excited, proud and happy" to win the elocution contest. “Yes, next year I will participate again," she said. Her parents, who were present during the awarding ceremony, were elated to see their daughter win the contest. Aside from Flores, other winners of the elocution contest under different categories and the winners of the essay writing contest were given their awards on Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 19, on the eve of Barack Obama’s inauguration as the first black president Jan. 20. The MLK Day events in Saipan are organized by the African-American Cultural Preservation Committee chaired by lawyer Joe Hill. According to the group, the events intended to remind the world of Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream that someday “we would judge a man by the content of his character, not the color of his skin." The group invited civil rights activist Marsha Rose Joyner to be the keynote speaker in this year’s commemoration activities, which also included a civil rights mini march in Garapan and an open forum. Joyner recounted that she was born into a family whose fight for black equality and justice goes back more than 140 years. - GMANews.TV