News Detail
Benjamin Kany ’18 Wins Top Award in Writing Contest
Benjamin Kany ’18 was selected as a top winner of the 2016 Mahatma Gandhi Art and Writing Contest for his personal essay, “Justified Violence?”
Benjamin was inspired to write “Justified Violence” after he witnessed his friend being bullied when they were eight years old.
“Writing has allowed me to escape the ‘hustle and bustle’ of the outside world and dive into my imagination. What inspires me to write are the people I meet in my life and the past experiences I have had; I really enjoy writing about specific moments in time that have defined who I have become today,” says Benjamin, who was initially shocked when his essay was selected as a top winner. “I didn’t expect my piece to win let alone have such a profound effect on those who read it. I put a lot of time into this essay and to know that others appreciate my work is truly a fulfilling experience.”
The Mahatma Gandhi Peace and Harmony Award, sponsored the Association of Indians in America South Jersey Chapter (AIA-SJ), is open to high school and middle school students throughout New Jersey. The goal of the award is to spread Mahatma Gandhi’s message of peace, racial and religious harmony, and tolerance for each other and for each other’s culture. This year’s contest theme was “when violence appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.”
Read Benjamin’s essay here.
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