LJWorld.com

I have long thought that heartfelt truth most always comes from the voices of the young.

In so many ways, the young freely express the thoughts and opinions of their parents, neighbors, schoolmates, and the general citizenry around them. They admire candor.

With that backdrop, one must remember that the United States of America is a nation of immigrants, and many of them are students in our schools. These students and their families bring to us their different world perspectives and different cultures, all so essential and important as the United States faces the challenges of the 21st century.

The College Board’s National Commission on Writing recorded the powerful words and experiences of these students in its latest study, “Words Have No Borders.”

“The students describe where they came from and why they came, what they encountered, and their hopes for the future,” Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board, said. “Underlying all these stories is an unmistakable current of hope, courage, and hard work, clearly illustrating that, as in the past, these students are among our nation’s greatest assets.”

No nation, regardless of its history and current standing, has too many gifted thinkers to sustain greatness.

“Like nothing else, reading and writing was the bridge to our new world,” Edwidge Danticat, noted author and immigrant, said. “Words have no borders. Every experience deserves a hearing. Everyone has a story to tell and we are all the better for it.”

Among the powerful student responses were these:

“I knew the answer, but I didn’t know how to say it in English. This struggle made me stronger.”

“English has gotten me to a high point in life.

“They start making fun of us because we don’t know how to speak English. “

“Learning English was my ultimate goal.”

“We were labeled as the ‘green side’ or the ‘know nothing people’.”

“Books are my best friends.”

“The richness of the language immediately took hold on me.”

“I love this country, too.”

“Growing up, my parents always spoke Vietnamese.”

“When I am in a class full of people who only speak English, I feel out of my element.”

“My parents taught me how to speak and understand English, but they also taught me how to read and write in Arabic.”

“I am a proud Spanish — and English — speaking American.”

“How much will college cost by the time I graduate high school?”

“College, here I come.”

“Immigrants do come to improve, not make things worse.”

“If it weren’t for my grade school teachers and my parents, life right now would just be one major struggle.”

What these youngsters of foreign origin want is a chance, a chance to live a productive life as an American, a chance to give back to those individuals, churches, and schools that reached out to them.

What they want is a chance to serve in all aspects of American life, to advance the health and image of their new country. They want to be included at all levels.

They are, after all, like us.