“¡Si se puede!”
By Omar Meza
As I walked up to the train, ready to board and travel to the windy city of Chicago, I didn’t really know what to expect. I was on a train with 14 other individuals, all whom had the desire to learn and grow into powerful leaders. These individuals had one thing in common: the love and passion for being or experiencing everything Latinx. The passion drove us all to want to do more with ourselves and to make our voice heard.
Arriving at the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute conference, I was caught off guard by the amount of information I was about to receive. I sat down for breakfast, lunch and dinner with the 14 other individuals and we listened to speakers who inspired us to go out into the world and do something worth our time.
When one speaker, R. Mateo Magdaleno, spoke to the crowd, he has us all hold onto this tiny mustard seed. Most of us were confused on how small and difficult it was to keep the seed safe. The speaker then told us that we are like this seed. Some people may look at it and think it is a piece of garbage, something useless; yet, we are more than that. To become something substantial, we need to be planted and we need to grow. When others taunt us, tease us, push us down, we must let that fuel our growth.
In that moment, as silly as the presentation of the concept was, I felt inspired. I took in the powerful words and digested them. They became a part of me from the second I left the luncheon.
The speech brought me back to a time when I was belittled and dehumanized like when boys would tease me for the color of my skin, the gender I was destined to love and the passion I had to make each person I met happy.
The wounds are now scars and I will never will forget the pain brought upon me by selfish and ignorant individuals and I will always think of how their words fueled my fire. I was a seed and the bullies were watering me, fertilizing me and helping me grow into the person I am now.
Magdaleno reminded me that I am something special, that I am someone important and that I have the power to change the world with my words and with my actions. He inspired me to want to write this very column to remind everyone who happens to read my column. You are special, you are powerful, you are a seed that just needs to be planted and cared for. You will grow into a beautiful flower, tree, vine, whatever you need to be.
Throughout the entire conference, everyone chanted “Si se puede,” which is tied back to Cesar Chavez. “Si se puede” translates to “yes it is possible,” giving everyone a sense of hope and drive to keep going when things would get tough. Chavez used it as his motto during his 24 day fast in 1972. The quote inspired us all to keep going and keep fighting for what we believe in.
What I believe in is fighting for the boy who never really was understood. For the boy who was pushed around by others because he was different. He deserves so much more than what was given to him. He deserves an opportunity to thrive and shine. He deserves to be free and to live his life the way he chooses to and not the way society screams at him to live.
I fight for the girl who is shamed for being confident. I fight for the girl who is told she is fat when she is perfect the way she is. The girl who is strong and who holds her head high and who deserves the respect she fights for each day.
I fight for each and every minority that is shamed for being in a country that they weren’t born in. They belong in our country just as equally as everyone else here. The desire to become an American is real, the desire to be treated as a human is powerful, the passion to make it through all the rough and tough travels, words and actions is so overpowering that they can survive any battle.
I fight for each of these types of people but I don’t stop fighting at just these people. I fight for all the ones who are forgotten about and deserve attention, I fight for the ones who are neglected and mistreated and most of all, I fight for myself to take each day one step at a time, with a smile on my face and fire in my heart.
Si se puede. Tu te puedes.
