Growing up as an immigrant in Northern California, Tamara has firsthand experience with the profound challenges that come with lacking immigration status. These include limited job opportunities, the constant threat of deportation, and financial insecurity. Despite these difficulties, her passion for immigration reform has only grown, fueled by her personal experiences and her academic journey at Berkeley, where she studies Political Science. She has been exposed to the difficulties that keep immigrants like herself from achieving equal...
Yajaira Arroyo is a first-generation college student at UC Berkeley, pursuing a B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Spanish Language, Literature, and Culture. As the eldest daughter of Mexican immigrants and a native of Oxnard, California, growing up in a mixed-legal status household has shaped her passion for public service, particularly in pathways to higher education and immigration reform.
During her time at UC Berkeley, Yajaira has worked as a college advisor at a continuation high school in East Oakland, helping graduating...
Raised in South Central Los Angeles, Talley is dedicated to addressing disproportionate rates of incarceration and criminalization, housing insecurities and lack of adequate healthcare services faced by marginalized communities. Growing up, Talley witnessed friends, neighbors and family experience criminalization and harsh sentencing. More recently, while supporting her mother through her battle with Stage III breast cancer, Talley experienced firsthand the ways in which BIPOC and low-income families often receive unequal access to medical...
Every day around 5 PM, sometimes much later, I left the Cannon House Office Building from the exit that faced the Capitol Dome. I am enamored with this Monument. Every time I saw it either coming to or leaving work, it served as 288 feet of marble motivation. It reminded me of the immense privilege it was to be invited to a space of such significance and importance. It fueled me with the energy I needed to complete an 8-hour workday, a 3-hour class, and a few miscellaneous hours for homework and making a phone call home.
My three months in Washington D.C. have been undeniably transformative both personally and professionally. Throughout my four years of college, I struggled with the uncertainty of what awaited me after graduation, but from the moment I set foot in the city, I fell in love with its energy. I wish I could explain it. It didn't take long for me to realize that my future lay within the halls of Capitol Hill. I had pledged to myself that I would never leave California, yet aside from the cold winters and terrible Mexican food, Washington D.C. quickly felt like home. ...
Jennifer Ramirez is a first-generation Latina studying Economics and Public Policy at UC Berkeley from the Bay Area. Growing up in a mixed-status household, she experienced first-hand the hardships Latinx immigrant families faced, such as the struggle to assimilate, obtain basic needs, and become financially stable. The systematic barriers that limit the upward mobility of historically marginalized communities propelled her to become an advocate in her local community, and pursue a career in public service. After being selected to attend Harvard Kennedy...
Interning for Senator Padilla’s office has been incredibly surreal and undoubtedly the highlight of my college journey. This marks my second visit to the East Coast, where I’ve not only adapted to the chilly weather, but also gained newfound confidence in making professional decisions. I have quickly fallen in love with the vibrant and driven culture of Capitol Hill, and I have come to appreciate the importance of networking and relationship building. Just last week, I had the privilege of engaging in four consecutive 30-minute coffee chats, reinforcing the importance of...
I never thought I’d ever be a morning person. Being awake at 5 AM was only a product of late-night study sessions, cramming for a midterm or yapping on the phone with my long-distance friends back at home. But now, being awake at 5 AM is a product of a newfound discipline, only made possible by the distance UCDC gifted me. Distance from distraction, stress, and more has been healing.
Why 5 AM? As a Digital Communications Intern for Congressman Dan Goldman, the representative for New York’s 10th District, I am responsible for ensuring that he is...
My time in Washington, D.C. has been interesting thus far. I've had a varied range of experiences and emotions working as an intern with the House of Representatives Committee on Rules in the Capitol Building. The Committee controls which proposals advance to the House Floor, the guidelines that will govern how bills are presented, and the conditions under which the debate will proceed.
For our ranking member, U.S. Representative Jim McGovern, the House Rules Committee office acts as a communication...
Placement:Committee on Rules, U.S. House of RepresentativesPlacement Location: Washington, D.C.
Ali has been a lifelong advocate of social justice. Having experienced years of childhood homelessness, she intimately grasps the influence of money on human life. By elementary school, Ali was able to recognize the evilness of capitalism and aspired to dismantle it. Now, as a young adult, she has completed her requirements for a major in Legal Studies and a minor in Race and Law,...