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After the plenary, I found that I shared many connections with the speaker, Wendy Cai-Lee. I also grew up in a traditional Chinese family, where I was taught to be modest and humble. I never felt comfortable expressing pride for myself, and that behavior of being overly humble often made me lack confidence. However, I believe what she said about being our own champions is very true, because no one will value us unless we value ourselves first. The same as it was for her, the move from China to United States made me feel responsible for my family’s well being. Through the experience of helping my parents settle down in a new country and play a role as a guide for my parents, I was rewarded with many useful skills in life such as communication skills and real world problem solving skills. Both the speaker and I had to face difficult problems, but, likewise, we also appreciated the experiences because I recognized that I become mature and also gained the knowledge of know how to approach solutions in a more effective way at a young age. I also agree with her that women should support each other more often, and more women need to hold accountability and ownership. I look up to her, I take her as my inspiration, and I will work as hard as she does.

The first time the word “abortion” came to my attention was during a debate activity in high school. I was completely embarrassed because I did not know the meaning of the word. After my teacher gave me a rough explanation on abortion, I remember I chose to be against it. At the time, all I knew was that abortion is a method to kill a baby that has not fully developed, and I was totally against abortion, and my opinion did not change until today! I grew up in a town where gender equality seemed impossible. To my parents, my gender was seen as a disappointment because they had wanted a son. Sometimes within the Chinese community, people turn to abortion when they do not want to have a daughter. Because some use abortion for this purpose, I did not accept abortion when I was younger. However, after the plenary session today, I believe we have to take into account the many factors that cause pregnancy and respect all women’s decisions on abortion. In the past, I did not agree with the use of abortion within my community to avoid having female children. Now, I have grown to understand that within my community women are sometimes forced by their husbands to have abortions. With this in mind, I have come to see that culture and background influences peoples’ value of gender. Society should be more open on the subject of abortion and women should have rights and freedom to make any decisions for their health and bodies.