Anytown Alumni

I never thought of myself as a political person. I wrongfully believed that someone like me—a young, Black Latina with no social capital, no connections, and no higher education—had no place in politics. It felt like a conversation I didn’t deserve to be a part of, a table where I had no rightful seat.  

That changed the day a dear friend introduced me to the power of civic engagement.  Suddenly, I realized that politics isn’t just about policies; it’s about people, communities, and the future we shape. And if young people like me stay silent, we give others the power to decide our future for us.  

Friendships are struggling. Recently, I watched a video titled “The friendship recession” by Richard Reeves who pointed out the very real challenges our society is facing when it comes to friendships.

There has been an increasing decline in the amount of friends we have, people are seeing their friends less, people are meeting new people less frequently and it negatively affects our health. 

As Black History Month comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on which Black figures in history I heard brought up in conversations, on posts, or in school.

Being in college, I am able to receive a much more comprehensive education on Black figures and take classes in subjects like African American studies.

Looking back at high school though, I remember all we ever really learned about was MLK, Rosa Parks and sometimes a little bit about Malcolm X, though never in a very positive light.

I attended Anytown Leadership Camp in 2018 as a delegate and Anytown has changed my life. 

For starters, I made a lot of friends at Anytown. I liked that we would get together to do ice breakers and fun activities to start the day and sing by the campfire with everyone in the evening. 

During the day we would participate in exercises that brought awareness to issues facing our world.

Over these last few months, we have all had the shared experience of having our world changed by COVID-19. It has looked different for everyone, but that has been the baseline of our year.

In the United States, this has meant a rise in hostility against the Asian American community. I can only speak to my experience, which has been very little as:

• a white-passing half-Filipina and,
• as a person who has not left the house in months.

I have seen the growing reports of hate crimes against my community, I have seen my mother worry about how she looks when she goes out for groceries, I have seen those that I love suffer.