Photos & Videos

After taking several government courses, I became eager to experience politics in a real-world context.  I decided to spend my summer in Washington, D.C. doing two internships at a congressional campaign office and at the Department of Homeland Security. This coupling afforded me the opportunity to experience a soup-to-nuts view of the entire political process.

In my first internship at the campaign office, I worked alongside minority members of congress as they sought out victory in their upcoming races. Aside from researching donors and data banking, we organized fundraising events.  One of these events was a “Southern Style Barbeque” to support the efforts of a representative from North Carolina in a bid to retain a high profile seat.  The food was delicious and the company was first-rate.  We had the opportunity to mingle with such dignitaries as House Majority Whip, James Clyburn, and Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi.

After enduring the process of background checks and obtaining a security clearance, I began my second internship in the Department of Homeland Security in the White House Liaison’s office, which gave me an entirely different perspective of government. My primary responsibility was to respond to citizen mail, which addressed issues ranging from immigration to national security. The goal was to provide timely responses to each and every inquiry, so the stress levels in the office could get high. I became exposed to both the inter-workings of the newest federal cabinet department as well as to many of the common concerns among people living in the United States. When I was not at my desk, I could be found, alongside other DHS interns, touring sites such as the White House, the Pentagon, or a dog training facility, and meeting Secretary of DHS, Janet Napolitano.

 I am really thankful for the eleven weeks that I spent immersed in the epicenter of American politics. All in all, my summer turned out to be a win/win situation both for myself and the offices for which I worked. I learned invaluable lessons about government and life that no textbook could begin to teach.

This summer I interned with the Pennsylvania Diversity Network (PDN), Pennsylvania’s largest LGBTQ rights organization. Since Pennsylvania has no state law that protects its residents from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, PDN has proved instrumental in passing local laws, making Pennsylvania the state with the most inclusive local laws but no state law. During my time at PDN, I focused largely on non-discrimination policy reform and legislative action. I spent a large amount of my time going to pride festivals and getting attendees to sign letters to their federal legislators to support a battery of bills currently in Congress that would aid non-discrimination reform—from passing ENDA, to repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and restrictive immigration policies.

A secondary focus of my internship was a photo project called “575 Same-Sex Couples: Facing Inequality,” which gave a face to Pennsylvanians who are discriminated against due to the lack of inclusive state laws concerning discrimination and marriage equality. For the project, PDN photographed couples exclusively from the Lehigh Valley area (where we are centrally located) and tabulated data about the couples, such as the number who have raised children or work as medical professionals, just to name a few. For the project, I worked principally at recruiting couples at pride festivals as well as editing and framing the photographs. Currently, the photo project is being featured at Bucks County Community College in hopes of aiding judiciary action in the area.

Before leaving home, I began the process of reforming my old school district’s non-discrimination policy to include sexual orientation and gender identity. Though this process could take up to a school year to fully reform, I am optimistic that these changes will be implemented and that LGBTQ students at my old school will never need face the same type of discrimination that I had to face growing up in Pennsylvania.