She Persisted: An Evening of Civic Engagement and Youth Leadership

A society which is vibrant and growing requires not just an educated and informed citizenry, but also an active one. This means each of us can take action and engage our local communities on issues that impact us to bring change. In this day and age, it’s easy to think we can learn and know everything digitally, from the comfort of our couch. But there are times for us to get off the sidelines and take action.

January 26, 2024, was one of those days. The Hoboken Public Library hosted an inspiring evening titled, “She Persisted: Kamala Harris Book Launch & Panel Discussion,” focused on civic engagement, leadership, and the importance of increasing representation in politics. Featuring an esteemed panel of elected officials and passionate youth leaders, the event brought together community members to discuss the impact of running for office and advocating for meaningful change.

“Running for office is incredibly brave. Choosing to raise your hand - to serve your community- is incredibly brave,” said author Raakhee Mirchandani. “In the wake of the 2024 election results, well, I wanted to find a way to gather the people and have a real conversation about what it’s like to do the job, to represent constituents with integrity, clarity of purpose and honesty. And I wanted to focus this conversation on what our future voters, our kids, wanted to hear.”

The event was co-hosted by four student leaders: Janhitha Veeramachaneni, Nirvaan Pal, Eva Kondili, and myself, Arza Bhalla. We each brought our unique experiences in advocacy, community service, and political engagement to the discussion, setting the tone for an evening that encouraged young people to take an active role in shaping their communities.

The program began with a presentation by Janhitha and me, who explored the history of women’s suffrage and shared eye-opening statistics on women running for office. Eva followed with a personal reflection on her own campaign experience at The Hudson School, highlighting the challenges and rewards of stepping into leadership roles. Nirvaan then spoke about youth leadership initiatives and the importance of getting involved in politics.

Author Raakhee Mirchandani was introduced and read excerpts from her book, “She Persisted: Kamala Harris”, setting the stage for an insightful panel discussion featuring esteemed Hudson County elected officials, Senator Raj Mukherji, Assemblywoman Jessica Ramirez, Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla, and Councilwoman Emily Jabbour. Young students got the chance to ask these panelists questions, and throughout this panel, there were important conversations on the impact of running for office, the achievements of each panelist, and the importance of getting young people involved in politics.

The event ended with a postcard-writing activity, where attendees wrote letters to key elected officials, including Governor Murphy, Senator Kim, Former Vice President Kamala Harris, and President Trump. This activity emphasized the power of civic engagement at all levels, and showed people how easy it is to get involved.

“Kamala Harris didn’t start out as Vice President. She worked at every level - from organizing with other kids in her apartment complex against unfair rules to running for office in college - and built her civic engagement and service muscle,” said Mirchandani. “Vice President Harris’ story is incredibly inspiring and I want to reinforce the power our children have, right now, to be forces for good in the communities they live in.”

With a packed room of engaged students, parents, and future leaders, this event showed that when well-meaning citizens of all ages come together, good things can happen. Just by being better educated about the importance of representation, activism, and community-driven leadership, we are better equipped to take action to uplift our community.