Posted in Blogs on July 17, 2011 by CAUSE Staff
About a week and a half ago, on July 7, CAUSE hosted its NextGen Luncheon with Los Angeles City Attorney Carmen Trutanich. It was an intimate event between the City Attorney, law professionals, local leaders, and CAUSE interns— this garnered compelling, intriguing discussion among all. Over some delectable Chinese dishes, participants conferred, chatted, and networked. Everyone had the opportunity to probe Trutanich for advice, address any significant issues, and fire him with questions.
From the start, the City Attorney seemed determined to share some recommendations and counsel to young leaders that were starting to rise, namely those in the API community. It was clear that he hoped the interns could gain insight from those with experience such as himself. He spoke with fervor when he began outlining what he believed were fundamental characteristics of a great leader. To him, in order to be an effective leader, one must be able to work with different people, circumstances, sectors, etc. More than that, leadership is instilling desire in others and it is all about understanding how people perceive you as a leader. Citing a recent personal experience in the office, he revealed a candid example of how he was able to do just that and be an effective leader while dealing with a difficult, complex situation. Of course, having been involved in leadership positions before, we all understood how complicated relationships become when people gain power. But, how does this translate to how a politician proves his/her effectiveness?
To better explain this, Trutanich took things a step further— revealing how vital it is to bring forth a sense of trust in one’s audience as a leader. He cited how important the “correct” means of communication between politicians and the public are. Much of it has to do with how the public perceives you and what a politician does with the trust the public grants them.
As Trutanich shied away from rumors of a possible run for city mayor, he remarked that instead, his true desire lied in using his extensive experience and passion for law. With that, he presented his basic principles to reaching success as a great lawyer: always be the most prepared, maintain one’s reputation, and build good character. He was quoted as saying “The part of reputation is competence. The ability to make good choices leads one to build his/her character, and this is in turn, is all about perception.”
Of course, by the end of the day, Trutanich’s words of wisdom left many of us wondering if we were interested in pursuing a career in law, among all the other great areas of study. After some genuine contemplation over the years, I am still at odds with what career path I ultimately want to pursue. Sometimes, I find myself pondering the field of law as a possible future, at the same time, truly unsure of how passionate I am about law. It all seems to be a dichotomy: I, much like many others, desire stability, yet I seek thrill and exhilaration. Though some claim the law field provides a dreary, tiresome, linear path, I am learning more and more that the constant, chaotic nature of the field certainly also brings a sense of excitement, urgency, and unpredictability. But, how are we to know for sure?
One thing is for sure: the luncheon clearly displayed how law and politics are so closely intertwined. Even if the City Attorney wants to distance himself from being a politician, it is proven that leading well and managing relationships/networks are essential to remaining in both industries. It is the key to survival in such intense, cutthroat environments. With the endless issues arising for the City of Angels, how are today’s leaders going to manage dealing with the growing resentment from the people and increasingly complicated problems? And with that, will we ever be able to fully plan out our future goals? Will it be as instantaneous and painless as we hope? Or will it take years of messing up, breaking up, and finally succeeding? Law is a great option, albeit one out of thousands available. Circling these unanswerable questions in my mind, all I can remember are the words of the City Attorney, “[in spite of all these unknowns, all you can do is] prepare yourself for the ride.” After all, isn’t the pursuit the true delight?
Posted in Blogs on June 25, 2011 by CAUSE Staff
Executive Director Gene Kim (back row center) with CAUSE Interns and Director of Programs Carrie Gan
On Monday, Gene Kim, Executive Director of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), imparted his experiences and wisdom with us CAUSE interns. And I quickly learned that he and I shared a few things in common. First, we are both Korean males. Second, we both have a genuine interest in policy and advocacy. Third, we both realized in our college years that pre-med was not the path to take, that the world had more to offer than syringes and latex gloves. For Gene Kim, the deciding factor was his (unpleasant) experience in organic chemistry. For me, the deciding factor was my unwillingness to forgo any semblance of a romantic life in my twenties.
But let’s not talk about romance, because politics is a much juicier and more interesting topic. Kim outlined his background and how he had arrived at the point at which he finds himself today. He graduated from UC Berkeley, where he majored in sociology and rhetoric. Despite having been accepted to several prestigious law schools, Kim then took the bold first step of entering the political arena by committing himself to an internship in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS). At this juncture in his life, Kim knew little about politics, but his decision to take on the APAICS internship would lay the cornerstone for an impressive run in the political world—a run that continues robustly today.
Kim’s resume is indeed impressive, but I’m not going to list all of his previous positions here. That’s what Google is for. Indeed, what’s most striking about Gene Kim is not his resume, but rather the spirit that drives him and the broader purpose that invigorates him. As he was speaking to us, I couldn’t help but get the sense that I was listening to a man who firmly believes in the causes for which he advocates and genuinely empathizes with the people to whom his advocacy work pertains.
He spoke primarily of the need to use politics as a method for achieving policy change, particularly regarding the API community in the United States. There is no doubt that the API folks have made significant progress in their effort to gain a solid footing in American politics. In fact, to quote Gene Kim, who quoted another source that I cannot at this moment quite recall (this is my effort at proper attribution), “Asian Americans went from being the marginalized to the margin of victory.” The API community is becoming increasingly relevant in politics, so much so that many consider the API community to be the silent, yet all important, margin of victory in many political contests. Politicians have begun to notice that Asian Americans offer more than good food and flocks of Ivy League-caliber students.
But there’s still much room for improvement. Although the progress the API community has made is undeniable, a substantial gap exists between the current political relevance of the API community and the potential political relevance of the API community. Kim alluded to the reality that this gap is perpetuated, in no small extent, by the prejudices to which API Americans are often subjected. Gene Kim was once told by a well intentioned black woman, “You’re the first Asian guy I know who doesn’t walk around staring at the ground.”
This gap needs to be eliminated, and the way to do so is through politics. The API community needs to gain a better understanding and greater awareness of the significance of political tools—whether they be advocacy groups like CAPAC, elected officials, the law, financial resources, etc.—in effecting substantive change. Many of these tools already exist, in which case the API community needs to become aware and take advantage of them. However, some of these tools are absent, in which case the API community needs to muster the initiative to create them.
And that’s the work that Gene Kim does for the API community. He was galvanized to action by the realization that the API community is still insufficiently plugged in to the mainstream political system that determines so many facets of American life. He understands that political tools are integral to political empowerment, and he’s dedicated his career to that cause. He’s sharpening the tools that already exist and helping people become aware of their value. He’s also trying to forge the tools that don’t yet exist but could prove very beneficial down the road.
At the end of the session, Gene Kim and we interns engaged in a lively discussion regarding issues pertaining to the API politics and the API community at large. Kim then invited us to contact him if we had any questions in the future, but he made it clear that he would not be useful in answering relationship questions. But who cares? Politics is way more interesting than romance, right? Of course.
Posted in Blogs on June 22, 2011 by CAUSE Staff
Listen to Mayor Steven Ly's Inspiring Speech to the 2011 Class of CAUSE Leadership Academy Interns at the Kickoff Luncheon that was held on June 17, 2011, at the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce.
Posted in Blogs on September 06, 2010 by Monica Lee
It is half past four in the afternoon, on Wednesday, August 11. I am sitting at the edge of a crowd of about one hundred, crammed into a conference room in Los Angeles Trade-Technical College. Out of my peripheral vision, I see the members of the Board of Trustees of the Los Angeles Community College District, making decisions and discussing financial reports. This is the last possible scene that I could have expected to find myself in today, let alone a total of three times throughout the duration of this entire summer.
Moving through the final days of summer, I can’t help but be overwhelmed by the magnitude of the change that has occurred in my life. I expected to spend summer break in peace, leisurely preparing for the impending transition I was to make as a transfer student Vanderbilt University. Instead, I was thrust into an internship, an assistantship and an ambassadorship, all wrapped into a single neat package called the CASIC Leadership Academy, where I was expected to not only survive through the chaos, but to prevail in spite of it.
To begin with, I learned that this internship lay in a whole different dimension than what I had perceived earlier. Upon arriving at Charlie’s Megatoys office and surveying the nine other interns on the very first Monday of the internship, I realized immediately that this was going to be an amazing bunch. I was not disappointed, as we grew closer as interns and even as friends throughout the duration of these eight weeks. Through the pandemonium of coordinating CAUSE events, such as the Women in Power luncheon, I was rudely awakened to the reality of the working world, as well as the staggering amount of commitment that it entailed.
Moreover, by being in a unique assistantship position with Trustee Tina Park of the Los Angeles Community College District, my eyes were opened to the issues constantly flowing in and out of the school district, unbeknownst to most students. I, too, had been ignorant of the finer details of district administration and leadership, as well as the dozens of issues regarding renovation, budget cuts, and other school-related matters. As a personal assistant to Trustee Park, I was offered experiences that my fellow interns did not have in their assigned fields.
I was allowed direct participation in the activities of Trustee Park as a member of the district board, as well as a Korean-American community leader and representative. I had the privilege of drafting two resolutions to be established within the entirety of the Los Angeles Community College District, one of which was passed today. I interacted with the press like never before as I handled calls from reporters, some of them coming from as far away as the Associated Press agency of South Korea. I had one-on-one discussions, conversations and critique sessions with Trustee Park, circumstances that other interns probably never got to have with their respective elected officials. Although this unique assistantship often overflowed my plate and added onto my stress levels, it was a priceless, life-impacting experience that I treasured ever so greatly.
Lastly, as an ambassador of CAUSE, CASIC and the API community as a whole, I learned how to stand up for myself on behalf of other individuals and causes. Wherever I went, I had to remind myself that every word I speak and every action I take will ultimately reflect back onto someone else in addition to myself. The after-hour events and the research project tested this challenge to its furthest level, as I constantly considered the quality of my professionalism and ability to relay onto others the message that I was a good representative of this city; of Trustee Park; of the Korean-American community; and of CAUSE and CASIC.
Yet, I learned that what made me a good ambassador was being firmer than ever in my values and beliefs. I realized that there is something very wrong with a picture of each and every person in the world being happy with my passions and interests. The internship taught me that I can’t live to please other people, and that there is a fine but definite line between service and slavery to the community. Although one of my core values is service before self, I had to prevent others from shaking my faith and shifting my interests elsewhere for the benefit of being liked and appreciated. Some will always be dissatisfied with my dreams, or have an incorrect expectation out of me, and I need to be okay with those negatives. This perspective made me constantly thankful for what I had, and grew in me a greater desire to better represent the community and organizations I belong to.
Ultimately, the trip to Sacramento was the culmination of these three elements that completed the CASIC Leadership Academy. On top of it, the visit to Sacramento was the epitome of it all. Through walking across the lawn of the Capitol, into the legislative floors and through the Legislative Office Building, I experienced internship, assistantship and ambassadorship coming together as one. As a result, Sacramento encompassed every single emotion that I felt throughout the entire duration of this 8-week internship experience. There were difficult moments, when I had to juggle the schedule at the Capitol with press calls that flooded my work phone. There were moments when I wanted to cry out of sheer frustration and sleep deprivation, and moments when I wanted to drop everything and go home. At the finishing leg of the trip, the three elements came together before my own eyes, and I was amazed by how much I had matured and grown resilient over the course of the past eight weeks.
Overall, my life changing experience at CASIC was made possible due to of my own efforts. CASIC was organized, coordinated, led and improved by dozens of amazing individuals in this society, but ultimately, it was up to me to make it a positive or a negative experience. Although obstacles swayed me and almost made CASIC a negative experience, I chose to overcome them and make the experience into one that catered to my own passions and interests. I can’t say that I was trying my one hundred percent best throughout every single waking moment of this internship, because there were moments when I mistakenly worked with the right attitude or mindset. Yet, I can definitely be confident in the fact that that I kept my eyes on a greater goal, a wider focus and a bigger picture, which allowed me to prevail despite the fact that the past eight weeks were some of the most challenging times I had ever encountered. I’m so thankful that I was offered this privilege of partaking in such an awesome internship, and that I was able to meet friends and mentors who permanently impacted my perspectives regarding this world.
Posted in Blogs on August 18, 2010 by CASIC Intern: Jonathan Lau
Taking on this internship has been the perfect way to complete my transformative year. I applied for the CASIC program on a whim for the express purpose of having something to do for the summer. There was not much investment on my part in getting the internship, I was perfectly happy with wasting time at home until I flew off to Shanghai. In hindsight, I am glad that I was given this opportunity. Being a CASIC intern has been eye opening and rewarding experience. I cannot imagine having a more life changing eight weeks.
My assignment at Assemblymember Ted Lieu’s office was quite the learning experience. Working with the staffers really allowed me to see what it took to work at a district office. Melissa Ramoso, the intern coordinator for the office, welcomed all the interns with open arms and made sure that we were doing meaningful work. Among the interns, there was a strong feeling of camaraderie, especially since we went to lunch together every single chance we had which made the act of leaving all the more difficult.
In addition to working at the assemblymember’s office, I spent a great deal of my time at the CAUSE office. Throughout my time at CAUSE, the executive director Chris Ige has been nothing short of a great mentor. Chris is chockfull of stories and sage advice that I would have never heard, had I simply stayed at Ted Lieu’s office. In addition, he always took the time to answer my questions, no matter how simple. Through him, I was able to learn the backgrounds of the elected officials that I met, which made it easier for me to talk to them. Most importantly, however, Chris let me have my own projects in the office and asked for input on many of the things that he was working on. In fact, at times it was a bit overwhelming because Chris would ask for my opinions on things that I felt were far too important for me to weigh in on. Every day at the CAUSE office was an experience to be remembered. I am not sure whether it was his union background or just his personality but things in office were always very open. I could always be honest in my opinion around him and if we disagreed, we simply agreed to disagree. There were never any hard feelings. I did not realize the full extent of how much of a mentor Chris was for me until a week before the end of the program, and now that I have, I have come to value my time at the CAUSE office all the more.
The Monday weekly meetings with various famous persons was icing on the cake. In the all star line-up that we met with, John Kobara and Judge Ronald Lew were the standouts. Mr. Kobara’s engaging and high energy speaking style made the whole experience memorable. I took his witty life advice to heart and it was very reassuring to know that some of the advice that he was dishing out, I was already following, especially the part about not listening to your parents. The self help S.W.I.V.E.L. worksheet that he had handed out during his presentation is incredibly helpful, so much so that I have shared it with multiple friends. On the other hand, the meeting with Judge Lew went completely differently. Judge Lew spoke softly and slowly but his words had so much weight that they just stuck to my mind. The judge would often pause before answering a question and during that moment of silence, I could not help but hold my breath. When Judge Lew paused the world stopped and it only resumed once he had found the perfect words to express his thoughts. To me Judge Lew is a real life sage from one of those myths of old. I can imagine him giving advice to a young hero, advice that the hero ignores at his own peril. A large part of what makes the CASIC program so amazing is the fact that we are connected to such amazing people. I doubt I would have been able to meet any of these individuals by myself.
Every week I found myself going to at least one event, often times at the last minute because I would forget that there was even an event that day. The first event I went to was the Lilian Kawasaki fundraiser, which was terribly awkward. It was a very small fundraiser consisting of maybe ten people and all of them were familiar with each other. This made it extremely difficult to strike up a conversation and it did not help that many of them were old white men. However, Lilian tried her best to introduce us to people and facilitate conversation, so all in all it was not a terrible first experience. As I attended more and more events, I became better at networking and so the events became less awkward and more fun. The highlight of all these events occurred at the last event that I attended, at the APALP fundraiser where I found myself having a give and take conversation with LAFD Fire Chief Emile Mack. I ended that night standing next to State Controller John Chiang and just joking with him, completely relaxed and enjoying the moment. I really appreciated the events because it allowed me to see a part of society that I had not seen before. At events, I was finding myself surrounded by the elite of our society. These men and women were the ones who made or broke candidates before the election even started. I stood in awe of their mannerisms and poise, things that I had only seen in fictional television programs.
The greatest irony for me this summer was the fact that this research project was done on social media. After leaving UCSD and working on social media marketing projects for the better half of the year, I was ready to move on and experiment with something else. When my idea for doing the project on examining the relationship between the LAPD and Asian communities received little fanfare from the other interns, I threw my weight behind Kristina’s idea of social media. I gave a direction to the social media project idea by suggesting we make a handbook that taught the basics of social media to small non-profits and politicians. Surprisingly, I was nominated to be leader of the project Kristina and even more surprisingly nobody opposed it. Suddenly, I found myself leading a project on something I had wanted to get away from.
Thankfully, I had a very talented group of people supporting me. I had the vision of the project, but without the help of the other interns, that vision would have never become reality. For the most part everybody worked well together and the team dynamics of the CASIC class were great. Everybody contributed to the project in some way, and some even gave more than was asked or expected of them. To date, I have never worked with a better team.
All the things I learned during my time in CASIC pales in comparison to the friends that I have made. I really bonded with Monica, Kristina and Christian and I think we will be lifelong friends. Christian already tells me that he has my back and to never hesitate to call him if I need help. Even though it has only been eight weeks, graduating from CASIC is a heart breaking experience.
Posted in Blogs on August 07, 2010 by CASIC Intern: Lindy Pham
I have learned a lot during my summer at State Senator Lou Correa's District Office.  Lindy (Left) with her son, daughter and Senator Correa at the Summer Children's Festival Event
Before, I thought that politics was dirty and that it was all about having money and showing off. However, since working in the legislative office, I have changed my mind about politics. I now have a positive attitude towards the work of the legislative office.
At the office, I have found that the skills I learned at school are easily applied to the work that I am doing. These skills include using the computer, telephoning, communicating with others, typing, and filing. Besides that, having to wake up early and being in the office every day undeniably increases my discipline. The staff push me to do well and they create a positive work environment. The office feels almost like a family.
In the office, I can network and make friends; but other people can hear and see what I am doing, so I have to be polite all the time. Work gives me the opportunity to meet many different people every day and it lets me forget about my own life for a few hours. Being away from my normal life not only helps in listening to the constituents but it also gives me a more logical viewpoint on the issues that I may have to deal with in my own life.
Every day, the phones ring simultaneously with people calling for help. People that seek help from the Senator’s office are not usually aware of how busy we are. They always want to talk directly with the Senator, and the first thing they say is usually something along the lines of, “I voted for him. I want him to help me solve my issues.”
I really enjoy helping others and this is why I think the district office is the right place for me. At the office, there are not many people that can speak Vietnamese, however, almost all the people who come in or call the offices are Vietnamese. I find that I can help them more easily if I speak with them in their native language and since I understand their culture, I can comprehend their ideas and thoughts easily. Over all, I feel that I have a very important role at the office.
Posted in Blogs on July 25, 2010 by CASIC Intern: Jonathan Lau
With only three weeks left in the CASIC program, there are bound to be questions about what CASIC interns have been doing for their traditional research project. Below is the project proposal that was given to the chair of CAUSE, Charlie Woo, which clearly explains and outlines this year's CASIC research project.
There will be more updates, including sample handbook and website pages, appearing on this blog as the program progresses.
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CASIC 2010 Research Project Proposal
The problem:
Politicians and non-profit organizations have realized the power of social media as a way to spread their message and advance their cause. However, despite the fact that many politicians and non-profit organizations have incorporated social media into their outreach operations, most have done so ineffectively. This can be seen in the lack of quality in the social media accounts and a lack of integration between the different social media platforms.
When asked about social media, Stewart Kwoh, director of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, stated that his organization was still learning how to use social media to reach out to the younger generation. He also admitted that they have not put as much effort into it as they should have and will soon be hiring someone to manage their social media accounts. Representative Adam Schiff was in a similar situation, where he and his staff have just begun to learn how to use social media tools to reach out to constituents and that he was “definitely still planning to use it in later years.” It can be seen that many politicians and non-profit organizations are still in the learning stages of using social media and have not reached the level of sophistication of the audience that they are targeting.
Studies by Nielsen and Gallup indicate that social media’s popularity and use are continuing to grow rapidly with the highest rate of adoption in older age groups. Continued use of low quality social media accounts and slow adoption will be increasingly detrimental to the prospects of politicians and causes of non-profit organizations.
Our solution:
As most of the CASIC interns are part of the generation that grew up with social media fully incorporated into their lives, we find ourselves to be very comfortable and knowledgeable with the subject. This puts us in a unique position to help introduce politicians and non-profit organizations to social media.
Over the course of the program, CASIC interns will comb over Facebook, twitter, Youtube, blogs and websites. They will scrutinize and breakdown each of these social media platforms that they have used extensively for years and determine their respective strengths and weaknesses as they understand them. Interns will also look for ways to apply these strengths and weaknesses towards advancing a civic cause. These findings will then be applied towards CAUSE’s own social media accounts to demonstrate their effectiveness.
In addition, CASIC interns will study social media’s role on recent civic actions. These case studies that involve expert statements will lend legitimacy to our research and make our project more relevant, as well as provide real world examples of using social media in a civic context.
One group of interns will examine the March 4th protests that took place at college campuses across the country in response to education cuts. An assessment of the state of events that led up to the protests will be conducted. Interns shall study social media’s role before, during and after the protests. Research will also be done on the aftermath of March 4th. Interviews and statements with some of the individuals involved with the March 4th protests including student regents and trustees, as well as other leaders and organizers. Emphasis will be placed on finding how social media was used successfully throughout the March 4th protests.
Another group of interns will be analyzing how non-profit organizations and politicians on federal, state and local levels have been utilizing social media to conduct campaigns. Comparisons of the different approaches towards social media taken by various campaigns will be assessed for their effectiveness. The experiences of various political staffers and non-profit organizations with social media are to be included in the handbook. Once again, an emphasis will be placed on what was successful.
At the end of the project, we will compile our research into an accessible handbook which can be distributed cheaply and easily to interested parties. A supporting section on the CAUSE website that hosts supplemental multimedia content, such as video, and a copy of the handbook will also be created. This combination of traditional and new media in spreading our research project allows for the highest visibility and accessibility, due to the fact that we are targeting an audience that is still more comfortable with traditional media.We aim to distribute the first batch of handbooks to politicians and their staff during our visit of the state capitol.
Our hope is that the handbook can be of aid to non-profit organizations and politicians in their inevitable adoption of emerging social media tools.
Last week I got the opportunity to sit down and talk to Senator Lowenthal. I was excited to talk to the senator because he is barely in the office and this opportunity is rare. But most of all I get to hear what is going on in our state from the perspective of someone who has a huge influence on California and someone I wish to be like someday. The new and information I got from the Senator was far more detailed than what I would get from any other media source.
Personally talking to the Senator about high speed rail, he made it very clear that this issue would be heavily discussed in the legislature for years to come. I personally agree with high speed rail because I believe that it will benefit our state.
Senator Lowenthal is a chair overseeing the Transportation Committee in the Senate. After hearing him speak,I learned that President Obama made it a priority to have high speed rail across the United States. England, France, China, Japan, and Korea have it so the US must have it also to keep up to date with the world's technology. Thanks to California voters passing Prop 1A last year, funding was able to go into high speed rail. So when high speed rail does happen in the US it will start here in California. Currently, the planned route of the high speed rail is from San Francisco to Los Angeles and later it will extend to Anaheim, San Diego, and cities in central California. Right now, the state has 12 billion dollars in the account for high speed rail, which is no where close to the 40 billion needed to complete the project.
There are doubts as to whether high speed rail will bring in revenue for the state or just create deficits. In essence this project can make or break California. Past studies have shown that high speed rail will bring in large revenues, however, a UC Berkeley study conducted a month ago showed that these studies were inaccurate. To further complicate the topic China, Japan, and France are competing to build their system in the US.
As a young college student with dreams of becoming a legislature, I realize that I should greatly educate and familiarize myself with high speed rail and the arguments opposing and supporting it. Because if I ever do become a law maker or get involved in politics in any way, high speed rail will most likely still be a hot topic.
Shortly before Lunch, the CAUSE Interns, Chris Ige and Charlie Woo walked out of Megatoys after our intern meeting where we immediately met Albert Lee, one of CAUSE’s board members. We waited shortly for Nelson Tan, a longtime supporter of CAUSE and CASIC, and crossed 2nd Street into some peculiar alleyway.  Unlikely place for a restaurant
It was pretty difficult to imagine that there was a restaurant in such an isolated place (let alone the business incentive to have it there), but they had a table ready for us, so we sat on their surprisingly comfortable cardboard seats and looked at the menu. The Restaurant, R23, was apparently part sushi bar and part art gallery, a fairly fitting and classy establishment for our meeting with both Mr. Lee and Mr. Tan. We ordered our food (myself feeling particularly limited since I have an aversion to fish) and Mr. Lee asked the interns to tell him about ourselves and our research project. When he found out about our project, he was excited about it. He agreed with our notions of how relevant and changing social media has become and that it affected not only how younger generations are following the world, but also participating in it. Particularly with elected officials, there needs to be a realization that there is plenty of potential for votes and support in younger voters. Social media is a way that has been and can be effectively utilized to reach out to them if used properly.
CASIC Interns waiting on lunch
As we got halfway through the lunch, I was recommended to go sit on the other side of the table. It was a fairly long table, so the interns on one end of the table were not able to speak to the other side without leaning forward awkwardly and talking with an unprofessionally raised voice. In particular, they wanted me to speak with Nelson Tan. Foolishly I had assumed that because his surname is “Tan” (ironic because my last name could have been “Lim”), I had not realized that Mr. Tan was Filipino and also a significant figure in the Philippines .
Mr. Tan
The three CAUSE interns of Filipino descent, Christian, Patricia, and myself, got a chance to talk to Mr. Tan about Filipino politics, which was fairly relevant given their recent elections. The conversation was held in both English and Tagalog, with Mr. Tan and Patricia handling the Tagalog. We talked about the election of Noynoy Aquino, the power of family dynasties, and the similarities of the election with the United States presidential election in 2008. The power of younger voters and new media (that is, texting on cell phones) seemed to be just as important in Noynoy’s election as it was in Barack Obama’s. The discussions we were able to have with Mr. Tan and Mr. Lee were intriguing and educational.
Also, we had mocha ice cream for dessert! Masarap!
CASIC Interns with Charlie Woo, Albert Lee and Nelson Tan
Colleagues of mine could've sworn that I have finally been plucked out of my so-called "stone age" existence because for the first time I agreed to make that epic journey to the Staples Center. What a disappointment, I guess, that I was there for something more interesting than a Lakers game. Yes, I was at the Staples Center for the first time in my life and I have witnessed something more expensive, more grandiose and more spectacular, politically that is! And believe me when I say that it was more exhilarating than basketball!
On July 8th, with five other CASIC interns, I made my way to the Lexus Room of the Staples Center to attend the Joint Workforce Investment Board and Youth Council Quarterly meeting. The plush atmosphere of the venue was very fitting as the political big-wigs of Los Angeles were there to discuss and present the $25 million HIRE LA's Youth Initiative/Summer Youth Employment Program. It was refreshing and, personally, quite uplifting to know that there is actually some sort of activity that is swirling around when it comes to re-invigorating LA's economy. What's better is that the youth are the ones that are given priority.
In congruence to the idea of the event, there was also a presentation as to how the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)/Stimulus Investment ACT (WIA) Funding was being utilized now and in the past. What struck me the most about the initiative was the plan to train workers during the economic recession for jobs that will be produced when the economy recovers. I know of people that have lost jobs or are on the brink of being let-go by their companies. To have something like this would be a superlative morale booster, not to mention an opportunity to learn something new.
I really learned a lot from the event and it was also nice to see Mr. Charlie Woo and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Really, the feeling was tantamount to seeing "what's-his-face-Kobe-Bryant!"
The event was short and yet in that span of time a great deal of things were deliberated, idealized, and instigated. The main premise was to re-write the woeful economic tale that Los Angeles is going through. Indeed, there is hope and in the words of one of the speakers: "Never waste a crisis."
I won't.
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