Pramila Jayapal never actually wanted to be an elected official, but the freshman congresswoman from Washington felt compelled to run in order to keep effecting real change. An award-winning activist long before becoming the first South Asian-American ever elected to the Washington state Senate (and, two years later, the first Indian-American elected to the U.S. House), Rep. Jayapal has spent most of this century fighting for immigrant and women’s rights. She even got arrested for it earlier this year.
It’s no surprise, then, that she was asked to share her wide-reaching wisdom at the first-ever She the People Summit in San Francisco. Designed to connect, empower, and inform the women of color now running for office in record numbers, the STP Summit gave Jayapal a chance to not only share her experiences with bigotry and sexism in the political sphere, but also prove to those coming up behind—and alongside—her that fighting back is worth it. It just takes the proper perspective.
Rep. Jayapal, 53, took time out from her busy day to visit with Daily Kos guest reporter Iara Peng, former COO of Solidaire. She spoke about the different perspectives that she brings to the Capitol, as both an immigrant (one of just twelve in Congress) and a woman of color.
Diversity isn’t just about the pictures looking better or checking a box—it’s really about bringing a lived experience to bear. And so the stories that I tell, and the stories that I respond to as a human being, are very different because of my immigrant experience, and because of my organizing experience.
The hearings that I chair, I chair differently. I tell different stories, and I listen to different stories. I craft different legislation because I see how desperately needed that perspective is, and how it’s not being represented.
Take six minutes and get to know Rep. Jayapal. She may have come to the United States all by herself, but she’s committed to working with others to build a better nation for all of us.
It’s beyond time for women to be involved in the leadership of these United States.
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