Law Day
Student Law Day Contest Winners - 2020
The OBA Law Day Committee thanks Oklahoma educators, students and their families for participating in the 2020 Law Day Contest. With a theme of "Your Vote, Your Voice, Our Democracy," the contest commemorated the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution.
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex." - Nineteenth Amendment
This year, nearly 1,300 students from 46 towns and about 70 schools and home school groups entered the contest.
Oklahoma Supreme Court Chief Justic Noma Gurich, OBA President Susan Shields and Law Day Chair Ed Wunch pose with student winners of the Law Day Contest, March 2020, at the Oklahoma State Capitol.
The contest explored many aspects of voting in Oklahoma, in the United States and around the world, in part, using these writing prompts. Contest winners' entries are below.
Read about this year's contest on the Contest page and learn more about OBA's annual Law Day program.
Click on an entry to see it larger or continue reading.
Grand Prize Winner
12th Grade Art
Jesse Anderson, Owasso
Pre-K Coloring
First Place
Emma Brielle Duarte, Pauls Valley
Second Place
Aubrielle Haubert, Stillwater
Honorable Mentions
Selma Cody, Ada; Meadow Bales, Tulsa; Callie Lewallen, Morrison
Kindergarten Coloring
First Place
Eva Kelly, Tulsa
Second Place
Jacob Ponticelli, Vian
Honorable Mentions
Lucy Brocksmith, Oklahoma City; Mackenzie Gee, Salina; Amayah Butcher, Salina; Adelyne Gibson, Stuart; Ellionna Johnson, Vian; Haylee Hays, Vian
First Grade Art
First Place
Gordon Bryan, Glenpool
Second Place
Kellan Neely, Shawnee
First Grade Writing
First Place
Luke Kauffman, Tulsa
Honorable Mention
Molly Jo McNabb, Coweta
Second Grade Art
First Place
Amelia Kwok, Oklahoma City
Second Place
Brody Gilliam, Stillwater
Second Grade Writing
Honorable Mention
Colton Denton, Stillwater
Third Grade Art
First Place
Sophie Buchanan, Harrah
Second Place
Ansley Brown Leedey
Honorable Mentions
Bruce Campbell, Stillwater
Third Grade Writing
First Place
Eleanor Duel, Edmond
The Nineteenth Amendment and Women's Right to Vote
People like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton worked for forty years to win a basic right. On August 18, 1920, twenty-six million women finally got the right to vote. I think that made everything change. The women's right to vote took fifty years to be accomplished, but in the end, women got to vote. I think the Nineteenth Amendment and the women's right to vote is important because women need to get to make more choices. I also think it is good because it does not just give women the right to vote, but it gives women many other opportunities to do other things, like being a surgeon or a lawyer. Read the full essay.
Second Place
Elijah McDaniel Stillwater
The Nineteenth Amendment gave women the right to vote. Why is that right important?
It is important that women can vote, just like men. The Constitution tells us that all men are created equal. It means women, too. If all men and women are equal, then if men get to vote, women should get to vote, too. Women are smart. They can be just as smart as men, or even smarter. They can know as much about our country as men do. They can have ideas about how our country should work, just like men. Since women are smart, they should be able to vote. Read the full essay.
Honorable Mentions
Logan Lee, Stillwater; Betsy Tucker, Pauls Valley; Arianna Snyder, Skiatook; Ella Parks, Seminole
Fourth Grade Art
First Place
Dustin Hitchcock, Stillwater
Second Place
Boston Hardin, Yukon
Honorable Mention
Caleb Kennedy, Stillwater
Fourth Grade Writing
First Place
Hannah Kauffman, Tulsa
The Eagle and the Pitcher: A Fable on the Right to Vote
It was a scorching day, and it seemed as if the sun could not be squelched by any cloud, no matter the size. The desolate landscape consisted of a scraggly undersized couple of trees and a vast sea of dry Bermuda grass. A few perched birds were soaring high above the ground, scavenging for any sign of water.
In the 1600s Galileo discovered that the earth moved around the sun. The Catholic church believed that the sun moved around the earth and tried to keep Galileo silent. If they had succeeded our science would be skewed and scientific discoveries would have been slowed. It is important for us to have good knowledge even if it disagrees with tradition, religion, or previous scientific thoughts. Read the full essay.
Second Place
Emmagene Kuehl Stillwater
My Right to Vote
The right to vote is important because voting gives me the chance to have a say in who will be my leader in government. Voting is the way I use my voice to give my opinion and choose the views that best represent what I believe is right. Voting is not a right that every person in the world has. One hundred years ago it was not a right that women had, even here in America. Women were considered to be valued at home, but their voice in government was not recognized.
Read the full essay.
Fifth Grade Art
First Place
Savanna Moser, Marlow
Second Place
Paetyn Giliam, Stillwater
Fifth Grade Writing
First Place
Nihal Zehra Erez, Oklahoma City
A Vote, A Dream
Voting. That thing you have to do every once in a while. As you plump yourself on your couch after a long day of work and see candidates debating on TV and you think, why is voting so important. Why do people take so much time just deciding on who or what to vote for? I’ll tell you why. Because voting represents us and who we are, it helps us take part in our democracy, it keeps freedom alive, it helps people, it helps the environment. Read the full essay.
Second Place
Alice Greenwalt, Blanchard
Why Do You Believe the Right to Vote Is Important?
Voting is a basic democratic right that should be protected, and promoted, which is why many people are surprised that the U.S. constitution provides no explicit right to vote. The importance of voting is one of the most important rights that U.S. citizens have. Nobody can force people to vote, however many people do vote, because voting lets us tell the government what we want to do and is a very important part of any democracy.
Honorable Mentions
Londyn Watkins, Stillwater
Sixth Grade Art
First Place
Addyson Harmon, Tonkawa
Second Place
Mahala Latta, Poteau
Honorable Mention
Megan McGuire, Skiatook
Sixth Grade Writing
First Place
Ellie Cheng, Oklahoma City
A Brief Comparative History of Suffrage in Peru and the United States
Peru was a colony of Spain from the year 1533, when the conquistador Francisco Pizzarro claimed it for Spain to "westernize it" and gain political power for himself. Spanish -born Peruvians and native Incas declared their Independence from Spain on July 28, 1821. On August 27, 1821, indigenous peoples were granted citizenship. The first form of democracy in Peru was called the Nominal Democracy and existed between 1822-1895.Read the entire essay.
Second Place
Addy Ramsey, Skiatook
Comparison of Venezuela and United States Voting Rights
Voting rights play an important part in society. They allow people to express their opinion about how their country should be run. Voting rights vary from country to country. This paper will compare and contrast the voting rights between Venezuela and the United States. The first general election was held in Venezuela on December 14th, 1947. This was the first honest election in Venezuela. This election used compulsory voting which requires citizens to vote in elections, and failure to vote could result in a punishment. Read the entire essay.
Honorable Mention
Miles Bryan, Stillwater
Seventh Grade Art
First Place
Julie Castillo, Skiatook
Second Place
Alyne Judkins, Hobart
Honorable Mention
Ella Haiges, Edmond
Seventh Grade Writing
First Place
Jessica Myers, Skiatook
United States vs. Iraq, More Than a War
The country I chose to compare voting rights with the United States was Iraq. I chose Iraq because when I was one month old my dad was deployed to Iraq for the first 15 months of my life. The United States has a more advanced voting system, dating back to the late 1600's. Iraq dates to the biblical days but did not become a county until 1932. Their first 'free' election was 73 years later. The United States military protected the Iraqi poll booths to give the citizens of Iraq a safe voting experience. Read the entire essay.
Second Place
Addisyn Miller, Skiatook
Time to Vote! US vs. UK
The United Kingdom and the United States are very similar in the way that their government evolved in the department of voting. Both countries have a democratic government. The US has a presidential government and the UK has a parliamentary government. The voting rights of each country are almost indistinguishable. The minimum age to vote is 18 years, both men and women are allowed to vote, and there are no wealth barriers. Read the entire essay.
Honorable Mention
Brielle Anderson, Skiatook
Eighth Grade Art
First Place
Hannah Harris, Oklahoma City
Second Place
Ava Creekmur, Tulsa
Honorable Mentions
Austin Buchanan, Harrah; Heidi McQuay, Skiatook; Max Bruner, Tulsa
Eighth Grade Writing
First Place
Emma Neff, Edmond
A History of Women’s Rights
The fight for equal rights has always been an important part of America's rich history. Women gained their entitlements as American citizens by revolting against the normalities of their time to stand up for themselves and their rights. The story of how it began lies in the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848, the birthplace of American feminism. As the very first women's rights convention in the U.S., it served as a starting point for the women's suffrage movement. Read the entire essay.
Second Place
Murphy Barnett, Norman
Dearest Mary,
I am writing to you to tell you about this amazing convention I attended yesterday. It was called the Seneca Falls Convention and it was all about our rights as women. It's a two day convention that women could attend! Men could attend today, July 20th, but the first day was exclusively for women! Read the entire essay.
Honorable Mentions
Brayden Hughes, Tulsa; Tara Samiee, Tulsa
Ninth Grade Art
First Place
Lorene Arneecher, Salina
Second Place
Emma Page, Cushing
Honorable Mention
Peyton Bull, Duncan
Ninth Grade Writing
First Place
Nathalia Mireles-Mota, Tulsa
The Women’s Suffrage Movement
The women's suffrage movement had a lasting impact on the United States, giving women rights and opportunities that changed the future of the country. Many do not often realize that the movement was not solely focused on voting rights. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, author of the Declaration of Sentiments, made the intentions of the movement clear at the Seneca Falls Convention, held in 1948. Among other things, women in the early 1800's to 1920's wanted emancipation from social constructs within marriage and the workforce. Read the entire essay.
Honorable Mention
Mikhayla Minear, Salina
Tenth Grade Art
First Place
Thomas Buchanan, Harrah
Second Place
Cam Hang Tsan, Tulsa
Honorable Mention
Aréta Carr, Oklahoma City; Madison Allen, Oklahoma City; Maura Wilkerson, Oklahoma City
Tenth Grade Writing
First Place
Bryce Philips, Kiefer
The Road to the 19th Amendment
When the ballots first started
They filled with white men
Complaints were not spoken
Since the country just began
Then the country had grown
The ballots, not changed
Minorities wanted voting rights
And asked that things be rearranged
Read the entire entry.
Second Place
Kaylee Sprangler, Kiefer
The 19th Amendment
About a hundred years ago there were laws
From these laws people would quote
That women couldn’t run for office
Or have the right to vote.
All throughout the 1800’s
When rights were only male
Women marched and protested
And even went to jail.
Read the entire entry.
Honorable Mentions
Logan Jones, Kiefer; Jamarius Smith, Lawton
Eleventh Grade Art
First Place
Palmer Strubhar, Piedmont
Second Place
Aubrey Topping, Marlow
Eleventh Grade Writing
First Place
Palmer Strubhar, Piedmont
The Plight of the Suffragettes and their Enduring Legacy
The courageous suffragettes of the Women's Suffrage Movement of 1920 tipped over the first domino that led to an unstoppable force of female empowerment that spread across the world. Had women not rallied together to get the right to vote, the past 100 years would have been extremely different. Luckily, the protests and rallies of the suffrage movement were not only impactful, but also inspirational for years to come. While the amount of changes that resulted from the suffrage movement are vast, I will highlight three specific achievements which have greatly impacted today's culture. Read the entire essay.
Second Place
Bryce Cutts, Edmond
Chains That Confine Us
Chains that confine us
Work all day and all night
Equality shared, my friends and I
Beauty she is a man and not
Hard to see the likes of my eyes
We know who is and isn’t
Take away these shackles
These chains that confine us
We are like you are we not?
Read the entire entry.
Honorable Mention
Nathaniel Bowman, Lawton; Hunter Fox, Taloga
Twelfth Grade Art
First Place
Katie Williams, Pocola
Second Place
Tanner Luetjen, Tulsa
Honorable Mention
Emily Peters, Tulsa
Twelfth Grade Writing
First Place
Katie McQuay, Skiatook
The Growth of Voting Rights in the United States
When considering changes in American voting laws to include minorities, many people only think of the 15th and 19th amendments, which were supposed to remove voting limitations based on race and gender, respectively.1 However, these amendments are not the only critical historical changes to voting laws in America, and they were not always as successful at bringing equal suffrage as most people assume. When the nation was first founded, only landowning white male adults were given a nationwide vote while today, almost every U.S. citizen has a say in the election process. Read the entire essay.
Second Place
Alyssa Hall, Tulsa
The 19th Amendment
Can we say
She marches down the cold, paved streets,
A chanted rhythm she repeats
And though her voice is loud and clear
The states refuse to lend an ear.
Her sentiments have been declared,
At Seneca Falls her teeth are bared,
She’s Stanton, she’s Anthony, she’s Chapman Catt,
The “cult of womanhood” bespat.
Read the entire poem.
Honorable Mention
Hannah Rystedt, Tulsa