Dear Panem

District 10

Dear Panem,

Equality. Clearly defined as, "the state of being equal, particularly in status, rights, and opportunities."

You may be thinking that it is strange to address a letter where I am teaching people about what equality is. However, I personally think that is indeed strange for an entire population to forget about something that is essential to keeping an entire civilisation running.

Equality is non-existent in Panem and I think the evidence is quite clear from the way the Capitol have treated the districts ever since the place has become civilised. From the Hunger Games to not being able to use our own resources that we work so hard to produce and maintain, I don't think there is a single person, from Districts 1 to 12 that isn't aware of the unfairness and unjust ways of the Capitol. 

Though the acts of the Capitol and the rules that they have implemented have angered me to the point where I can feel every single blood vessel in my body turn into dynamite, inequality digs deeper into the districts, further enraging those in the outer districts. 

Every year, for 75 years, the youth in Districts 1 and 2 train as much as they can to intimidate and win over those in the other districts in the Hunger Games. They train until they feel that they are ready to volunteer. Last time I checked, Capitol, that was against the rules of the Games. But, that's okay. It's only Districts 1 and 2 breaking the rules. Not like it's District 10 or anything. Bah! Imagine that! We'd have to send our most vicious peacekeepers (what an ironic name) to kill all those currently training! Not only that, but we'll imprison the trainers and impose some of our brutal but necessary tortures on them as a reminder to never go against the rules of our great Capitol! But we'd never do that our little angels in District 2. No way in hell!

Speaking of the peacekeepers, they are doing anything but keeping the peace here in the outer districts. Funnily enough, they are the ones who are taking it away! In my district, which is 10, and in 11, we come anywhere near our stock and crops, and bam! One whip to the back in front of everyone in our district, including family and friends, who are forced to watch every skin layer crack open like a nutshell. Does this happen to anybody in District 1? Does someone decide to drink the expensive wine they make and finds a peacekeeper whipping the wine out of their hands, pouring the wine on them, and burning them alive? Something tells me that this is unlikely because, you know, it happens...um...how often? Oh, yeah! That's right! Never!

Lastly, there are the incomes the people in the districts receive. Actually, I shouldn't be talking about this. After all, we in District 10 receive just as much as those in District 1. It's great because we work just as hard as they do, if not, harder, so why the hell am I complaining? Oh, wait. No. That doesn't happen either. Though the idea of our work ethics being just as strong as one another is true, it is the fact that the "Career" districts have it much better than we do, which is what I wanted to discuss.

District 1 are making jewels and other expensive items, and they only need to claim just over 1000 in tesserae. 1000 tesserae claimed by the entire district! Not happening in 10! We claim 1000 per person, and we're the ones who are feeding the Capitol, not just making them look and feel pretty!

Just that comparison alone, I think, is a wake-up call, reminding all of Panem that District 10, as well as the other outer districts, are not receiving enough for all that we do, and that we are suffering from the rules and actions of the Capitol.

After 27 years of living in this district, I still cannot say that I have ever had a decent meal, and the same can be said for my wife and children. I can take the adversity of living in a district like 10, but when I am forced to see those who actually give me a reason to live suffer, that's when the alarm bell rings, telling me that the Capitol have overstepped the border.

My three little angels, every evening, run up to me, shaking me as I lie on the couch with no energy to even lift my head up for a single second, asking me what will we be having for dinner. If I have to reply by telling them that there is nothing to eat one more time, the little sanity that I still have will disappear. Sure, they've grown numb to it because, hey, what do they know? They're just kids! 3, 6, and 9. They don't know what the hell is going on, right? Well, I, on the other hand, know exactly what is happening and I, as well as the rest of the people in my district, are ready to put a stop to the constant pain and suffering that all in Districts 10-12 have been under!

You may be thinking that the problems in the district regarding starvation can be easily solved as we deal with livestock. Yes, the solution is right in front of us, but for those of you who say this, you are the exact reason why I write this letter. Had this rule never been imposed on the poorer districts, and we wouldn't have to be left without any food or any other goods for months at a time. Pretty simple, right? Too bad the Capitol just doesn't see that because they're too busy trying to look like corpses covered in food dye rather than try to help those that they are supposed to care about.

Many in Districts 10, 11, and 12 feel the exact same way I do about the inequality that exists between us and the other districts. We have all the food we need to be nourished all year round, but we must not use it under penalty of torture, yet those in District 1 still live in luxury and in 2, everyone lives in the houses they build for themselves! We're claiming tens, even hundreds, of thousands of tesserae while 1 and 2 barely claim 2000. Seems fair, right? We in District 10 feel that the only way to draw the curtains on this long-term show that involves watching us suffer is to kill all of our livestock, from the chickens, to the sheep, to the goats, to the cows. Yes, we do this every day, but this time, the stock will be used for the ones who need it! Those in District 10, who work hard every day to keep these animals healthy and nourished, just like we need to be. If any peacekeeper gets in our way, we'll know exactly how to handle them; in the same way we will handle our stock.

Matt.