NY Times Project: Strength

Second Medal of Honor For 2009 Afghan Battle By Michael D. Shear

President Obama awarded the military’s highest honor for valor, the Medal of Honor, to aformer Army captain, William Swenson, who battled through an ambush in Afghanistan despite failing to receive the air and artillery support he had requested.

His superiors had failed to send in help on Sept. 8, 2009, when Afghan soldiers and American military officers and trainers were ambushed outside the village of Ganjgal in Kunar Province. An investigation found that senior military leaders had let command paralysis overcome them during the battle. Three Army officers were reprimanded.

There was a video that President Obama watched. “You see, out of a cloud of dust, an American soldier,” Mr. Obama said. “He’s without his helmet, standing in the open, exposing himself to enemy fire, standing watch over a severely wounded soldier. “He helps carry that wounded soldier to the helicopter and places him inside. And then,amidst the whipping wind and the deafening roar of the helicopter blades, he does something unexpected. He leans in and kisses the wounded soldier on the head — a simple act of compassion and loyalty to a brother in arms. And as the door closes and the helicopter takes off, he turns and goes back the way he came, back into the battle.”

Captain Swenson describes his award: “Today, I stand with the Medal of Honor,” he said, standing in front of the West Wing. “But this award is earned with a team, a team of our finest. Marines, Army, Air Force, Navy and our Afghan partners, standing side by side. And now that team includes Gold Star families who lost their fathers, sons and husbands that day. This medal represents them, represents us.”

Nothing stronger than a soldier who’s fought for their country, fought for himself and fought for his brother at arms to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

Once Alienated, and Now a Force in Her Husband’s Bid for Mayor         by Micheal Barbaro

As a child, Chirlane McCray experienced harsh discrimination due to her race, gender, and sexuality. Because she was an African American woman she faced extreme racism and was treated unfairly. But as an adult she is married to Bill de Blasio, the front-runner to become the next mayor of New York City. Aside from being his spouse she is also his loyal political partner. She plays a huge role in his political vision and guides him through every one of his campaigns. Due to her vast knowledge of the city she is able to have great influence in her husband’s work.

McCray overcame the discrimination over the years and grew up to be a strong and powerful woman. She was able to achieve what was thought of as impossible many years ago. Her story reminds us all of how much the nation has changed. McCray is both African American and a woman, but her race and her gender did not hold her back from gaining the political power she deserves.

Imagine having a seizure while doing something you love. You shake uncontrollably and lose control of your body and awareness during a very frightening moment. Your life would never be the same. Jerry Kills, Head Coach of the University of Minnesota’s Football team, is one unfortunate victim of Epilepsy, a serious neurological disorder that causes seizures.

Despite this however, Kills doesn’t allow it to affect his lifestyle. Jerry sees the seizures as nothing more than a distraction, one that him and everyone around him should ignore. Rather than choosing an easygoing lifestyle, Kills chose to stick with one of the most stressful occupations in the nation. This past week, Kills suffered a seizure on the sidelines during a game. His entire staff calmly followed a procedure that Kills had laid out for them, which included carrying on without him. In the previous years, when Kills would get a seizure during a game, the fans and players would be scared and worried for their coach. However the rest of the coaching staff would be there to mend the situation. However, even after every violent seizure, Kills shows up at his desk the next morning ready to do his job as if nothing had happened. His determination to his players and to win truly defines how strong he is.

Kills didn’t let his condition affect his life. He merely “stood up” instead of letting it control his life. At one point, Kills had kidney cancer, yet he treated it like his epilepsy. He chose to be strong and fight and now his cancer is in remission. True strength does not lie within your physique, but your heart and head.

Swimmer Is Fighting a Ruling: She Is Not Disabled Enough By Sarah Hill

Being penalized for maybe having a glimmer of hope of one day being able to walk again is beyond sad

-Victoria Arlen, 19

Victoria Arlen is a nineteen-year-old American swimmer from Exeter, New Hampshire. She spent three years in a vegetative state because of an autoimmune disorder and woke up in 2010 with paralyzed legs. She was brought into the Paralympic movement from the support of the people very close to her. Even though she was suffering from this disorder she still had the strength to train hard and compete in many competitions.

It wasn’t until recently that she was unable to compete in the Paralympics because she was ruled as an “ineligible” competitor. The I.P.C believed that she wasn’t disabled enough to compete. Since during her past competitions, they noticed that she was able to kick in the water, but that’s not true. It’s all part of an optical illusion; she has no voluntary control over her legs. The I.P.C demanded a medical report of her condition but even though her condition worsened, she was still not allowed to compete.

Victoria Arlen is such an inspiring and strong person. She endured so much physical, emotional, and mental suffering due to her disorder, her training, and her current situation. The thought that she isn’t allowed to compete in the Paralympics is ridiculous. Competing is one of the only ways she can endure her disorder; it gives her hope that she will one day be able to move again. Her strength and motivation persuades her to train harder and fight for what she really wants.

And hopefully the I.P.C soon forgets about this ridiculous accusation and allows hers to compete, but until then don’t stop fighting Victoria!

(All images thanks to Google)

Living With Cancer: The Scar Project by Susan Gubar (link to article)

This article is a pictorial series called “The Scar Project.” In the series, there are eight women shown who contain scars on their bodies from mastectomies. The author of the article writes how each individual felt after getting a mastectomy. After reading this article, I felt that each of these women were both strong and powerful, because after getting these scars, they didn’t let anyone bring them down. They didn’t let these scars make them feel unworthy, instead they used these scars as a way to gain strength and take on more challenges that life will throw at them.

(all images thanks to Google)