For 6 years, TEAM Westport’s Teen Diversity Essay Contest has considered specific, newsworthy topics.
This year, the town’s diversity action committee takes a different tack.
The 2020 contest asks teenagers to address a broad — but very important — theme: stereotypes.
TEAM Westport says:
A stereotype is a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a person, frequently based on that person’s race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or gender-identity. Stereotypes are often unconscious and may be introduced and reinforced — intentionally or unwittingly – by many sources, including family, peers, the popular media, curricula, and society at large.
This year’s challenge states: “In 1,000 words or fewer, describe your experiences witnessing, delivering, and/or being subjected to stereotypes focused on race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and/or gender identity, and describe the impact that such experiences are likely to have upon recipients. Consider steps that organizations, schools, and/or individuals could take to counteract stereotypes—whether as initiator, recipient or witness.”
“In order to dismantle bias, it’s important to first understand the factors that build bias,” says TEAM Westport chair Harold Bailey.
“Stereotyping is a first step toward bias in what historians and sociologists call ‘othering’ — behavior that places the stereotyped group outside the normal considerations of society. History has proven that this can lead to dangerously impactful results.”
The entry deadline is February 28. Subject to the volume and caliber of entries received, at the discretion of the judges up to 3 cash prizes will be awarded. The first prize is $1,000; second prize is $750; third is $500.
Any student living in Westport — or attending school here — can enter.
The Westport Library is co-sponsoring the event. Winners will be announced at a ceremony there on April 2, 2020.
(For more information, including full contest rules and an application form, click here.)