60th All Japan Inter-Middle School English Oratorical Contest / Student understands true self through his piano
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Takeshi Shimozato, a third-year student at Haebaru Nansei Middle School in Okinawa Prefecture, won the 60th All Japan Inter-Middle School English Oratorical Contest. The final was held on Nov. 22 at Yomiuri Hall in Yurakucho, Tokyo. The following is the full text of Shimozato's speech, titled "I Am Takeshi."
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You are probably about to check the speech contest list to see if there has been a mistake. Don't bother. It's correct. I am Takeshi, and I am a boy, but my mind and my heart tell me different. I have a condition called "Gender Identity Disorder."
Since I was born, I grew up playing with my cousins and friends that were all girls. I had a wonderful childhood and felt happy and loved by all those around me.
However, when I became a fourth grader, all that began to change. I couldn't understand why I was being asked to wear a boy's P.E. uniform and why I was being forced to change clothes in the boy's bathroom. Even some of my closest friends started saying bad things to me. What really hurt most was having to walk home by myself and hearing students behind me call me names. Why is everyone treating me like this? I cried to myself. I began to hate anything about school that separated boys from girls. (222 words)
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