The Smoke Signal wishes to allow students to recognize other hidden upstanders in our community. Please share upstanders in your lives and leave your nomination as a comment below. The Smoke Signal will select and honor outstanding upstanders from the website in 2013. Below are some quotes from MSJ students of what they perceive an upstander as.
“Someone who is willing to be that one normal fry in your box of curly fries from Jack in the Box.” – Akash Pelala (11)
“An upstander is a person who takes initiative in their community to act for the benefit of others by interfering when something wrong is happening, does the right thing when nobody is watching, and other actions along those lines.” Amun Rattan (12)
“I think an upstander is anyone who isn’t afraid to stand up for what they think is right, whether it’s helping someone who can’t help themselves or leading a worldwide cause.” Sahitya Mantravadi (12)
“I believe an upstander is one who takes action when no one else has the courage to do so.” Rishabh Malhotra (11)
“Someone who willingly goes out of their way to help another. There should be some kind of sacrifice involved, whether it’s their time or effort.” Aaron Ching (11)
“Some kind of shelf? Or someone who goes above and beyond to achieve some sort of positive purpose.” Christine Arnstad (9)
“An upstander is a person willing to stand up for something or someone, even though it might be contrary to popular belief. They do it not out of obligation, but because they know and believe it is the right thing to do.” Naomi Hong (11)
“I think an upstander is any person who has enough confidence in themselves to stick up for others, at least in their cause.” Anonymous
“Someone who stands up for something they believe is true and they speak out against something even if nobody else does.” Priyanka Chary (9)
“An upstander is someone who has a large universe of obligation, and puts others before himself/herself.” Momina Mahmood (10)
“An upstander is someone who stands up for what they believe is right and wants to make a difference.” Mansi Shah (10)
“An upstander is someone who takes the initiative to support a cause he or she believes in. Upstanders exemplify courage and are never afraid to stand up for what they believe is right.” Michelle Lee (12)
” To me an upstander is anyone who speaks or acts out with good intentions knowing clearly that there may be retaliation or criticism. ” Patrick Zeng (11)
“An upstander is a person who is independent and proactive.” Minmin Fu (11)
” Upstanders are people who are action takers that do the right thing. ” Evan Chang (10)
“An upstander is a person who acts in a way that is not based on what everyone else is doing but on what they believe.” Rebecca Wu (10)
“An upstander is an individual who can act out of the norm and someone who can you trust.” Gurnaj Johal (12)
