The United States joins the international community today in celebrating International Youth Day.
This is an email excerpt sent out today from, Youth, Students, and Educators for U.S. Department of State:
“The Department of State is committed to ensuring that we are engaging not only with the leaders of today, but also with the leaders of tomorrow. Today’s generation of young people is the largest and most interconnected the world has ever seen, defined by energy, talent, and optimism. Whether mobilizing for climate change or demanding democracy and equality, we are witnessing the unprecedented impact that young people can have in the 21st century.
This year’s International Youth Day, marks an important aspect of life for young populations around the world: youth migration. In 2010, there were an estimated 27 million young migrants throughout the world. Some of these young people migrate to find new opportunity; others are forced to flee from poverty or war.
As a nation founded by immigrants, and as a country with a long tradition of welcoming the
“huddled masses yearning to breathe free,” the United States takes great pride in our commitment to the rights of migrants to realize educational and professional opportunities in their new homes.
Young people communicate with peers from all corners of the globe, on Twitter or Facebook or Google Hangout. They take to the streets to demand dignity and democracy. And they work across borders to find innovative solutions to some of the world’s toughest challenges.”
In this art piece the young artist describes her piece, “In the scene, there is a girl portrayed as me, and she is praying for illegal immigrants, in her room.  Outside her window, you see the border of Mexico and the United States.  I am depicting sadness for illegals as this is something I often hear about in my culture.” She describes herself and her family, “My family is nice and cultural.  In my free time I read and sketch.  I like soccer and basketball, but I dislike other sports.  When I grow up I would like to be a social worker.”