The 2025 edition of the competition in pictures

These photographs document the third edition of the writing competition. My pen against racism and racial profiling, organized annually by LAKAY. The competition invites high school students from Lanaudière and the greater Montreal area to express themselves on racism, racial profiling, immigration, identity and living together, through poetry, slam, short story, argumentative text or creative narrative.

Students in the first cycle compete against each other, just like those in the second cycle, to ensure fairness between age groups. Each participant submits only one original, unpublished text. The texts are evaluated by a jury composed of teachers, artists, and representatives from community organizations, according to four criteria: adherence to the theme, creativity and originality, quality of language, and the impact of the message. Six prizes are awarded each year, including a People's Choice Award across all categories and an award for the best English-language text.

For this edition, you can consult the list of winners as well as the award-winning texts.