John,
My parents immigrated to the U.S. from Bangladesh in search of what many come to this country for: the American dream. But the dream of our life here is different from our reality.
I live with my family in Arlington, Virginia. While I am now in college, I spent years here as a teacher, translating America for my parents, navigating tax papers, counting money, and carrying the labels the country judges us by: poor, brown, Muslim.
My short film, The Forgotten Scraps of My American Dream, features a poem I wrote with advice for my younger sisters. It explores the falsehoods present in this so-called American Dream and the complexities that exist in my relationship to it. It asks a central question: though am grateful for what America has given me, did I have to give so much to America?
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The Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) gave me the tools, training, and power I needed to share my story. They asked me what it was like to live in a country where children, families, and entire communities are marginalized, where systems built on oppression and racism continue to hold young people back from living up to their potential. I explore this in my film.
Please take a few moments to watch my film, and the films of the other storytellers who are part of CDF’s Youth Voices Storytelling Fellowship. Young people in America today face serious, systemic barriers. But collectively, through listening to the experiences and visions for the future that young people share, we can move past outdated narratives like the American Dream and write new stories that bring about a future in which this country truly includes, cares for, and supports all its people.
Thank you,
Mahia Rahman
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Explore the Youth Voices films
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I’m Happy. Promise
The reflections of a young woman overcoming her battle of acceptance, including her mental health’s role in curating her reality.
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Seeds from the Same Tree
A look into the life of two artists, both first generation Latino Americans, who must overcome their challenging upbringings and support each other as they enter manhood.
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