Within the last YEAR, we have lost recent graduates. Within the last few MONTHS, we have lost current student. I have LOST my very best friend. But the causes of these death were not random, THEY were the result of what violence IS, what violence can DO, and if we don’t stop it now, what violence WILL BECOME.
 
    I am here today to START the movement of STOPPING violence. Society is CONSTANLY stereotyping our generation, as the WORST generation, yet to come. They stereotype us as hoodlums, street walkers, thefts, and worst of all…. murderers. Society EXPECTS us to DROP OUT of school and either go to jail, or to become a NUISANCE to society. Society believes that we CANNOT progress, and that we have NO potential to become anything more then another STATISTIC who will grow up to live in poverty. Now more then EVER, is the time for us, to make a change.
 
    The definition of violence is the extortion of physical force so as to injure, abuse or compromise the well being of a person. The definition of what we can do to stop it, is ENDLESS . All society talks about is how terrible we are and why we shouldn’t be allowed to do certain things, YET they won’t do anything to help us make it better. People are getting killed EVERYDAY, due to violence. It may not affect you now, but if this pattern continues, it will. You could loose your parents, your siblings, and ultimately, YOURSELF. We are a POWERFUL generation and if we work hard enough, we can make WHATEVER we want, happen.
  
   The Montgomery bus boycott ended segregation on busses. Women standing strong, all together, fought until they were granted the right to vote. We are the generation of technology and power and together, we CAN make a difference, to stop the violence. WE have come so far since the first day of kindergarten, and WE have overcome obstacles that society said we could NOT, so why should we stop now? Together, we can change the stereotype and WE can make a change.
 
 So when society tells us that we’re nothing, laugh in their face because we are EVERTYTHING. When society tells us we’re dumb, laugh in their face because we are MOST intelligent, and when society says we will NEVER become successful, LAUGH IN THEIR FACE BECAUSE WE ALREADY ARE!
  
   We ARE the students of EL Cerrito High, we ARE the role models for our generation and we are the leaders of our future. So together we can stop the anger, stop the hatred, we can stop the deaths and together we can stop the violence to make a change.