Senior Elizabeth Down gets taste of political activism
Posted September 6
Challenging herself this summer, senior Elizabeth Down got a taste of political activism and social justice issues through her internship with an organization that works on women’s issues.
Elizabeth was an intern at Feminist Majority Foundation, which sponsors smaller groups that work on varied issues such as education, labor and health care. In one aspect of her internship, she and her co-workers worked on a get-out-the-vote campaign, where they targeted college campuses.
“I encouraged young people to get informed,” she said. “I talked to feminist clubs and met with people who have similar ideas as I do.”
Another core part of her summer internship involved providing research for Girls Learn International, a group that works to address the lack of education for girls around the world. Her research would eventually be used as resources for middle school or high school clubs who meet to address this issue.
Elizabeth said her internship was valuable in that it provided real-world work experience. She was expected to be at the office at certain hours, attend meetings and take notes. But more importantly, the internship whetted her appetite for more political activism. In college, she said she’d like to direct her focus on political science or women’s studies, but for more now, she is interested in getting more exposure to advocating for certain causes.
“I’m not old enough to vote, but I’m definitely thinking about issues in the election,” she said. “We have to start thinking about how we can be part of changing things in the world. It’s not just about identifying problems. It’s also thinking about solutions.”
