How to build community like Gandhi would? Upper St. Clair 7th grader lays it out
An Upper St. Clair seventhgrader recently was named a Top Winner in the Gandhi Creative Writing & Art Contest — the second time she’s won it.
Suhavi Singh, who goes to Fort Couch Middle School, was recognized during the Gandhi Community Celebration on Oct. 2 at Carnegie Mellon University.
The 2022 event was organized by the Alliance for Humanitarian Initiatives, Nonviolence & Spiritual Advancement with the CMU’s Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion.
For the writing part, students were invited to submit a 500-word essay on the topic, “What does community mean to you? Is Gandhi’s view on community relevant today and how?”
As one of a dozen Top Winner’s in three grade-level categories, Suhavi got to present her paper on stage.
Each Top Winner won a oneyear dual membership to Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, a check for $150, a book on Gandhi and a certificate.
Suhavi also was also a Top Winner in the creative contest in 2020, for an essay about how they might mirror the commitment to serving communities, building peace and action of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, better known as
Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian independence and spiritual leader who championed non-violence. Born in 1869 and raised in a Hindu family, he was assassinated in 1948.
The Alliance’s Jignesh Shah said the point is to learn about Gandhi’s ideas and put them into action in daily life. “We were impressed with our youth’s views on: importance of community; community building; their own community contributions; listening to and respecting each other; practicing non-violence and peaceful protests; solving racial, economic and educational inequities; and the importance of policy that benefits all.”
Fort Couch Middle School gifted education teacher Thomas Yochum said, “Suhavi’s response was excellent and covered both an analysis of Gandhi’s views and her personal experiences.”
Suhavi says she was intimidated by the writing prompt, but was pushed by her mother, Monika Ubhi. “I am thankful for my mom because now I’m on the school district website, everyone is congratulating me and I like writing a bit more now.”
Her dad, Amrit Paul Singh, is really happy to see her maturing as a writer, including being a published poet, earlier this spring and this fall, in the anthology, “A Celebration of Poets.”
Because she likes listening to music, she’s going to use her prize money to buy AirPods.
You can read her essay below.
2022 Gandhi Creative Writing & Art Contest Top Winners
Grade 3 through 5
Martha Loeza Canto, St. Edmund’s Academy
Linnea Tucker-Hill, St. Edmund’s Academy
Emma Mason, Acmetonia Elementary School
Sam Zarit, St. Edmund’s Academy
Grade 5 through 8
Carter Kunicky, Norwin Middle School
Eliza Burgess, St. Edmund’s Academy
Hyunsoo Kim, St. Edmund’s Academy
Suhavi Singh, Fort Couch Middle School
Esme Kulick, St. Edmund’s Academy
Oliver Seo, St. Edmund’s Academy
Grade 9 through 12
Carissa Walsh, Springdale Jr. Sr. High School
Zaitun Kirabo, The Ellis School
Building Gandhi’s Ideal Community By Suhavi Singh
“The golden way is to be friends with the world and to regard the whole human family as one.” —Mahatma Gandhi
The beauty of Gandhi’s conception of a community lies within his idea of a unified “family” of individuals. Gandhi believed in a diverse, united communal society — one in which each citizen was both respected and came to one an
-other’s assistance; irrespective of religion, caste or beliefs. The sacrifice for humanity was a person’s most appreciable value in Gandhi’s vision. Gandhi strived to unite all people by persuading them to overlook their differences and follow the principle of universal brotherhood ... and sisterhood! Namely, he attempted to forge a bond between Hindus and Muslims to create a more
representative and accepting community. He asserted that the British took advantage of this religious divide and fostered hatred.
Gandhi’s views on the community are more relevant than ever within the divided societies today. One cannot skim the news without reading individuals disrespecting their neighbors, communities unable to navigate philosophical disagreements and even shocking examples of violence resulting from our differences. Even Pittsburgh, which prides itself on inclusivity is not immune. In 2018, a tragic, anti-Semitic mass shooting occurred in a local synagogue. Such extremism is antithetical to Gandhi’s beliefs and might have been prevented if every child had been taught to be open-minded about the opinions of others and knew the value of a diverse community. Even in Gandhi’s native India, communal hatred based on religious and political doctrines has once again spiked. Worldwide, intolerance begets more intolerance, as seemingly trivial issues now result in violence.
So, how do we more closely approach the world Gandhi aspired to and the communities he envisioned? As I see it, being in a community means you should always serve your community and be considerate of others, regardless of differences. Society members should strive to always be friendly and go out of their way to achieve peace and goodwill. If someone makes a mistake, forgive them and try to create a healthier society. By starting on a personal level, we can work to build a progressive community in the mold of Gandhi: a diverse populace that does not adhere to only certain ethnicities/beliefs but instead focuses on the community as a whole. Gandhi envisioned a community based on Sarvodaya, “welfare for all,” realizing that the lower caste is often overlooked. Many of us still struggle to recognize that vast sections of society are unable to meet their basic needs; it’s hard for them to even get food for sustenance. Using Gandhi’s principles, we should work for the upliftment of such people and support them to lead better lives for us all and the community as a whole!
It’s time to initiate the change on our own streets, parks and schoolyards. Suppose each person committed to understanding and living in better accordance with Gandhi’s conception of community. In that case, we’d all benefit and the world could start to approximate a place he once dreamed it could be.