NHI-LDZ Youth Legislative Session

Hello world! Today I post about the National Hispanic Institute's Lorenzo de Zavala Youth Legislative program which I had the pleasure to run sound for. During this program, current high school students came to our beautiful campus to essentially create their own mock government. They created a House of Representatives, Supreme Court, and others. They elected officials, campaigning and giving speeches. They took the time to learn the protocol for each, which I learned is no minor task! I was impressed by how professional the program was.

Furthermore, I was impressed by the caliber of students participating. They are high school students, but some seemed more versed than many adults I know. One of the first things they did after electing their Speaker of the House was to create a mock proposal of a law. The example that was given was a law, which in essence created the program which they were all happily attending. The protocol then dictates for a period in which the opposition to the proposed law speaks. Well, the first dissenting opinion gracefully and tactfully described how such a program could be viewed as exclusionary. It takes a lot of guts to go up against the masses like that, but it takes something special to put those views out so rationally on the spot.

Speaking of which, the Speaker of the House also greatly impressed me. At one point in the week, students from this program, as well as two other programs on campus came together to watch a movie about first generation college students. The movie itself was average, but afterwards there was discussion time. The Speaker of the House went up to the mic and really gave a great point of view. She expressed how she was not a first generation student. She was not raised in a poor household by most standards. She then went on to say how much respect she gained for students whose lives were similar to those depicted in the movie – those struggling without help or resources to make their way into college. I thought this was a powerful statement which is often overlooked now-a-days. We are taught to judge on outcomes, when sometimes we should be judging on the path taken and trials faced (if judging at all). No one has the same strengths and weaknesses nor will have as easy or difficult a path in life. It is refreshing to know that at least some who are younger than me understand this.

And, as always, I commend the University of Rochester on hosting such a great program. The benefits of such are further-reaching than any one person can imagine.