Rahul Arockiaraj ’17 has been inspired by Gandhi since he was in 4th grade and first learned about him.  “I might not be where I am today if not for Gandhi,” writes Rahul.  Because of the violence we are seeing both internationally and abroad–Rahul cites ISIS and Ferguson–generating conversations around nonviolence and peace is important.  “There is so much violence around us and I thought it would be great to take a moment and look back at how Gandhi used nonviolence as a method to fight one of the most powerful empires at the time,” Rahul explains.

Rahul applied his passion for Gandhi’s struggle to his entry for the National History Day (NHD) competition.  An annual competition, NHD aims to bring history alive for students through multimedia history projects.  This year’s theme is Leadership and Legacy in History.  Rahul decided to enter the competition with an original documentary, “Means Justify the End: Gandhi’s ‘Satyagraha’ and His Legacy.”  With no prior video experience, Rahul taught himself iMovie and Movie Maker over the summer.

Rahul is the documentary winner for Contra Costa County and will be submitting his documentary in the state finals on May 8th.  Congratulations, Rahul, and good luck at state!