Ankith Desai
Humans of YJA: September 4, 2023
“If we want the world to be more equitable, more fair, and more nonviolent — per our Jain beliefs — that is a possibility and within our means to act upon it.”
Seeing my parents, my family, and many other people who immigrated here have to deal with different struggles, and understanding how much work and progress is needed in this country is motivating. Inaction is not an option right now. Seeing how much work was needed in this country was my introduction into the world of politics and I have never looked back.
While most people I knew applied to STEM fields for college, I applied for Political Science and Urban Regional Planning. Paving my own path has been tough in many ways, however, it has also been empowering. It has opened doors to responsibility, but also allowed me to look for and make my own opportunities. My journey has been unpredictable, crazy, and full of surprises in the best way possible.
I had applied to colleges that had opportunities to connect me with congressional or non-profit programs in DC, and ultimately chose to go to the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign for this reason. I got accepted into their DC program, but there was an internship at the White House that I really wanted to do. I told my university I’d do anything to be in the White House and was told I was aiming too high. While this was disheartening, I ditched my university’s program and applied for the internship on my own. Throughout the process I learned that I must be prepared for anything and was determined to apply for this internship, in hopes of receiving the position.
When I say prepared for anything, I mean anything. The morning when I got the call that I had been accepted into the internship was a whirlwind. Everything was on such a tight schedule that I had only one week to pack up everything I could. I had to lease a place before I even saw it because at that point all I needed was a place to sleep. I moved across the country. All of this was worth it as I can now say that I just completed an internship at the White House.
This internship was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life, and of course the coolest. I learned there are a lot of exciting things you get to learn at the White House. My main task was working on reading and responding to the President’s mail. There is a wide range of public opinions on policies ranging from cancer research to climate change that are expressed in the letters the President receives. During the State of the Union, he often invites guests from the letters he receives. It was really impactful to see who he brought as his guests and know that my office played a role in them being there.
Having the chance to understand different public opinions reminded me of what I am passionate about, being environmental policy and voting rights. As a Gen Z voter, living in California, I hold certain beliefs on topics like health care, gun violence, etc. Whatever that I do, I take from Jainism. Values like equity, justice, and non-violence are the driving forces to act upon the issues you have opinions on. Ideas like veganism and vegetarianism are prominent in our culture and religion. This plays a big role in my interest in environmentalism and environmental policy.
Voting rights are another issue I am very passionate about. Voting rights are the basic freedom that allows for there to be progress on every other issue. If a person doesn’t vote, then they can’t express their views on policies they care about like housing or the economy. Voting is an entry-level for things a lot of people care about. If we can vote, we can guide the world how we want to.
After the internship, I joined the Office of Vice President Kamala Harris as an Advance Associate. I am contacted to travel to assist her and her team when they travel outside of Washington D.C. to engage with the American people. In the long term, I would love to see Jain advocacy in politics. A lot of interfaith communities have groups that work on this and I hope to start a Jain political action organization so we can educate our community on a greater scale. And I hope this would lead to getting people interested to run. People who are engineers or doctors can also run because they see something wrong and enter politics to make a change. I want our people to enter this space as it hasn’t been tapped by the Jain community in the past.
For anyone interested in taking on a similar path, I would advise you to be hard-hearted and passionate about what you believe in, but also be open-minded. Being on a short timeline and being told to come to a new city within a week, I also never thought I was gonna take a break from school. I realized maybe there is a possibility that I shouldn’t say no to everything so I had to have an open mind in that way. Working in government, I wasn’t sure where I was gonna be positioned or what the different offices are as it is very vast. Being open-minded to where I would be put, brought me to an experience that gave me a new perspective into what people feel and think. — #HumansofYJA, 11: Ankith Desai
The thoughts and opinions expressed in each post belong solely to the individual highlighted in the story. YJA does not endorse any of these viewpoints, but is simply using this project as a platform to showcase the diverse experiences of the youth in our community.
A special thanks to Charmi Shah and Garima Shah!
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