 Ania Shah and I'm from California in the United States of America. This piece is a self-portrait representing the human right to self-expression. Bullying during my formative years left my confidence completely depleted. Words had ripped me apart and I kept it all bottled inside. However, in my middle school years I found poetry. Words, having once been what scarred me, enabled me to look inside myself and see what I was going through and express myself. This piece depicts hands as methods of self-expression, namely words and poetry, with the words on these hands being lines from poems I've written, written in my own handwriting. The words are holding my head up, protecting my face, opening my eyes, and showing the world what I see. I'm depicted with dull colors and with a blank stare, to show the turmoil inside myself and what I was going through. However, self-expression enabled me to break free of that. That's why we see some paint radiating from my face. This is showing how I was able to release my true self and the underlying power of self-expression. I'm Ariel. For the Kids for Human Rights art competition, I have focused my art piece on you and human rights number seven. In my art piece, I have attempted to stress the importance of enforcing this human right by portraying a child's mugshot. However, on the placard that they were holding, their crime is replaced with victim of discrimination. The purpose of this was to express this placard as more of an accurate description of why the child had been arrested. I have done this to depict the child as an example of many other children failing to be protected by the law by being arrested for unjustly reasons when in reality their so-called crime was being a victim of discrimination. In addition to this, I have made many other artistic choices to express the meaning and impact of this right. The purple striped shirt mimics the outdated striped presenter's clothing, but when worn with denim overalls, it appears like an unsuspecting child's outfit, demonstrating how easily people can overlook the protection of children simply because they are children. Moreover, the white gaps between the stripes are tainted with red smudges to represent the innocence of a child being tarnished by risk and danger. Lastly, the height chart is to use the child's small figure to symbolize their minimal power and therefore lack of ability to defend themselves from the law. Further emphasizing why this right is so crucial. The United States and my parents are from Bulgaria. Being so close to Ukraine makes me feel very sad for that beautiful country. A few months back I met a girl named Nicole from Ukraine in my art school named Paint Fun Studio. Colin and her family came to the USA for shelter because their home was lost in the war in Ukraine. They Nicole told me that she had a dog in a cat back in Ukraine. She told me that she was really worried about how they were. Being a cat owner, I know how it feels to lose your pet. After three months Nicole left for Germany as it is closer to Ukraine. The last time I saw her she was sad because she isn't moving to her home country. She's moving to a different one because she is a refugee. I strongly believe that our home and our country is our birthright. No one can take it away from us. It is in human. Through this painting I wanted to spread this message to the whole world.