The Elie Wiesel Foundation Announces 2024 Winners of Prize in Ethics Essay Contest

Four college students from universities nationwide will be awarded scholarships totaling almost $20,000 for their exceptional essays on topical ethical issues

New cycle of application now open for the 2025 Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest

NEW YORK, Oct. 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Elie Wiesel Foundation, an organization founded by Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel and his wife, Marion, announced this year's winners of the Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest.  The Foundation's scholarship initiative selected four college student winners for their remarkable essays analyzing relevant ethical issues facing our world.

The Prize in Ethics Essay Contest, established in 1989 by Professor Elie Wiesel and his wife, Marion Wiesel, is an annual competition that challenges college students to contemplate an ethical theme or situation. Many essays often stem from a student's personal experience or introspection. Winners will be granted scholarships in varying amounts, totaling $20,000.

"Encouraging college students to reflect on their ethics with open-ended questions helps to mold courageous, moral thinking in a world that can be driven by false narratives and manipulative contexts," said Elisha Wiesel, the son of Elie and Marion Wiesel, who is the Foundation's Chairman.  "We are committed to keeping my father's legacy alive; his commitment to education grounded in ethics echoes through this Contest which he founded 35 years ago."

Chosen by a selection committee from hundreds of applicants, this year's winners are:

First Place Winner: 
Manu Sundaresan, University of Chicago
His essay, "Doing Time," examines the relationship between time, justice, and ethics within incarceration. Drawing from his experience leading writing workshops at Cook County Jail and Emmanuel Levinas' philosophy, the author highlights how incarceration distorts time and erases individuality, critiquing the dehumanizing nature of the criminal justice system and urging a rethinking of justice and ethical responsibility.

He writes, "Time, as it multiplies and takes on a small infinity of words and glances and kindnesses, can become a feeling. It is what we do with that feeling that matters most," reflecting on the power of human interaction to give meaning to time, even within the confines of incarceration.

Second Place Winner: 
Danial Alkhoury, University of Texas at Austin
His essay, "Scattered Leaves: Piecing Life Back Together " follows the author's journey as a Syrian refugee, from a peaceful childhood in Damascus to the trauma of civil war and forced migration to the U.S. It explores the moral complexities of paying ransom for the author's kidnapped father, the challenges of rebuilding life in a new country, and the struggle with displacement and loss. He emphasizes resilience, community, and the ethical pursuit of renewal and justice.

Third Place Winner: 
Anonymous, University of Colorado at Denver
The third place winner has chosen to remain anonymous due to the risk of transnational repression by the Iranian government and made this decision to help ensure their safety and protect their family from potential retaliation, harassment, or threats. The Elie Wiesel Foundation has a long history of championing dissidents of tyrannous regimes and honors the individual's decision to continue their work without fear of persecution.

Their submission, "The Bridges of Intersectionality and Fallacy: Unveiling Feminism's Global Paradox," reflects on Iran's 2022 protests following Mahsa Amini's death, critiquing Western feminism's lack of intersectionality and selective solidarity, while calling for a more inclusive feminist framework and exploring the complexities of personal activism, including silence as a form of resistance.

Honorable Mention: 
Atlas Chambers, Eckerd College
His essay "Southern (dis)Comfort," considers his complicated love for the South, particularly Florida, highlighting the region's natural beauty, cultural challenges, and the resilience required to navigate its often misunderstood complexities.

In addition to scholarships, winners are also awarded a trip to New York City for a seminar to discuss their essays among other ethical topics.  This year's seminar will be led by award-winning writer and Contest Readers Committee member, Michelle Fiordaliso.  The day will end with a celebration of their achievement at the renowned Lotos Club.

Jury member, EWF Board Member, and long-time supporter of the Prize, Dov Seidman, founder of The HOW Institute for Society and LRN, will host the students for an annual luncheon.  

"I'm proud to partner with Marion and Elisha Wiesel and the entire Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity in awarding the Prize in Ethics. This remarkable group of student winners, who are already making a difference in the world by writing essays that prod the conscience and consider issues through an ethical lens, embody the hope that a new generation of moral leaders will rise to meet the challenges before us," said Seidman.

Additionally, the Foundation has opened its submissions for the 2025 Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest, accepting applications through December 30, 2024. The contest is open to all undergraduate students enrolled full-time for the Fall 2024 semester at accredited four-year colleges and universities.  Interested students may apply directly via our submission site:
Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest 2025

About The Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics Essay Contest 
The Elie Wiesel Foundation Prize in Ethics Essay Contest encourages students to write thought-provoking personal essays that raise questions, single out issues, and offer rational arguments for ethical action. The contest is open to all undergraduate full-time students who are registered at accredited four-year colleges or universities in the United States. All submissions to the essay contest are judged anonymously. Winning essays present intensely personal stories, originality, imagination, and clear articulation and convey genuine grappling with an ethical dilemma.  For full details and guidelines:  Prize in Ethics - Elie Wiesel Foundation

About The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity: 
Elie Wiesel and his wife, Marion, established The Elie Wiesel Foundation soon after he was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize for Peace. Now spearheaded by Marion and Elie's son Elisha Wiesel, the Foundation seeks to carry on Elie Wiesel's legacy and spark ethical consciousness of human rights by investing in programs that promote moral leadership and real-world outcomes for victims of injustice. To learn more, visit: www.eliewieselfoundation.org  

Media Contact
Olivia Crvaric [email protected] 

SOURCE The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity