The annual McLeod Writing Prize recognizes exceptional undergraduate scholarly papers on topics exploring identity, race, or gender.
On Sept. 28, the College Writing Program (CWP) held the Emerging Voices Showcase, an event recognizing selected members of the Class of 2025 for their outstanding writing. Throughout the evening, students read from their work, CWP introduced the newest edition of REMAKE literary magazine, and the winners of the ninth annual Dean James E. McLeod First-Year Writing Prize were announced.
The late Dean McLeod created the prestigious McLeod Writing Prize to encourage students to dive deeper into research beyond the rigid format of research papers. He wanted students to recognize their potential to become scholars. The submission process allows first-year students and their professors to work together to create impactful eight- to 12-page papers that explore either race, gender, and/or identity. While there is an application process, students’ works are also able to be nominated by instructors.
This year’s McLeod Writing Prize rounded out to two winners, two runners-up, and two honorable mentions, with each prize awarded to one student in the College of Arts & Sciences and another in any other college at WashU.
Johnny Yeldham, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, won this year’s prize with his essay “Poetic Injustice: The Weaponization of Rap Lyrics” alongside Arielle Meisel, a sophomore from the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts, for her essay “Rainbows, Joy, & Closets: Domestic Labor Gets a Makeover.”
In Yeldham’s essay, he researched and analyzed the unjust practice of using rap lyrics in court as evidence. He was inspired to write about the topic after seeing an Instagram post that mentioned using a rapper’s lyrics against him in court. Yeldham started thinking more about the topic, leading to the award-wining essay.
“The issue with this is that rap music is a form of art, but lyrics are often presented to juries out of context, forcing juries to interpret these lyrics literally,” Yeldham stated. “As someone who listens to rap music, I know that lyrics can be hyperbolic, metaphoric, and even completely fictional, so it seemed to be a very clear violation of the rapper’s First Amendment rights.”
Jade Zhang, the Arts & Sciences runner-up for the prize, wrote her essay on “Trading Chinatown for Costco: The Future of Commercial Gentrification on St. Louis’ Olive Boulevard.” She was inspired after learning about the construction of a Costco on Olive Boulevard last year. As she delved deeper, she found that it was not the first time St. Louis government officials have authorized the destruction of a part of the unofficial Chinatown.
“With the opening of this new Costco at the end of October, several Asian-owned businesses and restaurants will be forced to relocate, and second-generation Asian Americans like me will be deprived of a critical cultural community once again,” said Zhang.
Arts & Sciences Finalists
Winner: Johnny Yeldham for "Poetic Injustice: The Weaponization of Rap Lyrics"
Runner-up: Jade Zhang for "Trading Chinatown for Costco: The Future of Commercial Gentrification on St. Louis’ Olive Boulevard"
Honorable Mention: Jeffrey Camille for "Black is in Fashion: A Window into the Contemporary Fixation of the Black Body"
Other Finalists
Winner: Arielle Meisel, from the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts, for "Rainbows, Joy, & Closets: Domestic Labor Gets a Makeover"
Runner-up: Valerie Passanisi, from the McKelvey School of Engineering, for "Omitted Modernity in Edward Curtis's The North American Indian"
Honorable Mention: Rachel Lu, from Olin Business School, for "Honorary Whites vs. Yellow Peril: How Social Media Altered Asian Identity Throughout the Pandemic"
