Wait, She Speaks English?
This line and simple assumption is what started and ended the speech given by Anh Ha ’17 at the 2017 Bailey Oratorical competition earlier this week. Ha, a senior studying Mathematics and Economics, was one of seven student competitors to take the stage and speak at this prestigious event. She spoke with purpose and was able to able to answer the prompt while also channeling humor, engaging empathy, and avoiding politics.
The very first Bailey Oratorical competition was held at Juniata College in 1910 by Letitia Fisher Bailey and Thomas F. Bailey. The original prize for the contest was $25 and $15. In recent years, the Bailey Oratorical is composed of students from all areas of study to compete for monetary prizes of $1000, $500, and $300. The speeches should be persuasive, encouraging all listeners to move into action. This years prompt was “at the heart of the liberal arts is civic engagement: how can we use the values of our liberal arts education to heal divides in our nation and world?”.
Ha opened her speech with the quote regarding her friend. She argued that in our world, our differences aren’t what divides us, but it is our assumptions. She stated that there are three different types of powerful questions; critical, curious, and courageous questions. She references these throughout the entire speech, giving examples and discussing their impact in our society. She didn’t ask many questions, but invoked the audience with her humorous and relatable statements such as when she talked about Inbound.
At Juniata, Inbound is our icebreaker. It is the way that most of us (Fall athletes excluded) get to know others, while doing something fun and adventurous such as hiking or swimming. Ha compares this to a kindergarten for young adults, but also claims that it is the start of every students liberal arts journey. Your college experience at Juniata is outlined with these liberal arts values that follow you your whole life. You are asking powerful questions like “where are you from” or “what do you enjoy” and these really create a connection that empowers us to keep asking more. Curiosity grows into critical thought. We don’t just ask for the sake of asking, but we ask with purpose.
She discussed her background, mainly how she grew up in a military family who despised the United States. The Vietnam War brought the worst out of our countries, and Anh was scared about coming to the US. Would anyone talk to her or give her a chance to be a friend? Fast forward to this year. She had the opportunity over Winter break to take 17 students and Dr. Nagengast to her home country of Vietnam. One of the students on the trip asked, “How can I reconcile what my country has done to yours?”. She stated that this was one of the most meaningful experiences of her life.
“The best way to reconcile is to reconcile with yourself. The past that I shared with America is not your past, but the present you shared with America is our future of unity.” — Grandfather of Anh Ha
She tied it all together with what could have been the best line of the night. She said that the person that assumed that she did not speak English and the person that asked her grandfather these critical, curious questions were the same person. And this person, was her very best friend. Overall, I think the entire audience was moved by this, and it helped her to become not only the 2017 Bailey Oratorical Champion, but also the People’s Choice Winner.
