Dominic Parker was 7 years old when Barack Obama won the 2008 election. His older sister Rochelle, who is African-American, followed the campaign closely along with her mother. In addition to Parker, she had adopted four other children of color. Parker's political consciousness was born the day the first person of color became president of the United States.
His quick, fleeting smiles give way to seriousness as he talks about his upbringing, how being the youngest of seven children contributed to his character, his way of thinking, and his future path that defined his future in politics. superseded.
Parker said he is looking to the brothers and their broader age group for guidance, but he also said he doesn't want to choose between two candidates who call each other “fascists.”
He talked about how Obama's victory affected his sister, how he felt inspired to pursue a career in politics, and how he started debating in elementary school after seeing Bernie Sanders' speech at his school in Lancaster. talked about it.
Parker emphasized the close race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, and how Clinton's loss affected him as an observer of events happening around him.
“This was a very important axis in my political consciousness because it reminded me that not everything is said and done,” Parker said.
Although Parker was initially dissatisfied with the election results, he admitted that his reaction to them changed over time.
“I was very reactionary at the time, very anti-Trump,” Parker said. “I'm still not a fan of President Trump, but I don't demonize him like I used to. I try not to demonize anyone anymore. That's just my rule.”
After this pivotal moment that made him analyze himself and his surroundings, Parker became more proactive by applying to the American Civil Liberties Union's Summer Advocacy Program, and in 2017, at the age of 16, Parker I went to DC.
As he immersed himself in the program and walked the lively streets of Georgetown, he befriended and even became romantically involved with a group of politically active teenagers with whom he still keeps in touch. Ta.
After graduating from high school, Parker decided to pursue a degree in political science. He transferred to CSUN in his 2022 year. Several of his siblings attend CSUN, continuing the family tradition.
“Especially in the Department of Political Science, we have a lot of very passionate supporters within the department of providing internship opportunities for students, whether it's traditional internships, the CSUN program in Washington, D.C., or the Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program. 'I think they contribute every year,' Parker said. “There are so many great opportunities for political science students, and I have directly benefited from many of them.”
He said he found leadership in professors like Nick Dungey, who fostered the philosopher's love of ancient wisdom. These included Aristotle and, more recently, 20th century political theorist Hannah Adlent.
“I see a lot of people getting lost in their own social media worlds, which is not a bad thing in itself, but when you get too absorbed in your own echo chamber and spend too much time, you end up becoming less involved with social media. “I think it's going to go away from the world around you, where everything is actually happening,” Parker said when asked if reading philosophy has contributed to his perspective on the current political climate. , replied:
He continued, his brow furrowed with concern. “I'm worried that the population is so disillusioned with this country that no one is really paying attention that it's ripe for some kind of totalitarian movement to invade. ”
Parker has shown a knack for building connections, regardless of the individuals involved. CSUN's San Fernando roots are connected to Cesar Chavez and the activist work on environmental policies that combated environmental racism in the farm worker movement.
He then detailed how Robert Kennedy Sr. secured Chavez's support, leading to a subsequent discussion of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s relationship with Chavez. Throughout this story, he maintained a common commitment to environmental safety as a unifying theme.
While traveling to DC for the CSUN in DC internship program, Parker happened to interact with several members of the Kennedy campaign. Curious, he then found himself sitting in Congress directly behind Kennedy Jr., who was testifying after being banned from Twitter.
“I listened to his testimony, and I was appalled, because to me, I don't want someone to talk about American principles like the right to free speech, the right to a free and unencumbered press. Because it was like listening to him speak, right?'' Mr. Parker described the experience of listening to Kennedy Jr.'s speech.
“The press should be free from government interference. I think a lot of that principle was… people aren't as worried about that anymore,” he said. “In my opinion, there's a lot of censorship going on where people don't want to have difficult conversations, don't want to actually discuss things.”
Parker spoke about the First Amendment, what it means to him to be an American, and his observations while watching Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in Congress.
“It felt like they were aiming for character assassination with the interrogation, rather than actually questioning him about the substance of his claims,” he said.
Parker continued to stay in touch with people on the Kennedy campaign and began volunteering at their events in Los Angeles County. He immediately began working on a campaign for a candidate he believed in, reminiscent of Bernie Sanders in 2016. He was eventually offered the position of Lead Student Ambassador and was recently promoted to Western Regional Director.
Parker talked about his strategy for combating criticism of his campaign.
“I tell people to listen to Mr. Kennedy's podcast for 25 minutes, listen to his own words, and then make your decision,” Parker said. “If you still don't trust him, don't like him, don't like his policies, and vote for Biden or Trump this November, that's fine. But don't let the mainstream media decide what you think. Please.”
When asked how this experience contributed to his future career path, he shed some light on his experience at DC. Partisan tensions were a hot topic, as was the question of whether to side with Democrats or Republicans.
“By accepting this position and making it public, you have basically guaranteed that you will not be invited to participate in any party politics in the future,” he said with a laugh. “I think that's very unlikely because I'm a nonpartisan. I'm independent. I've wanted to work as an intern for some Democrats, and I have. I'm going to work for some Republicans as an intern or in some capacity, but from what a lot of people have told me, if I jump ship or work with someone who's not a member of the party. If you have anything to do, you should work in a space like that. There's basically no future in this party. When I considered taking this role, I had to take it really seriously, so I did. I decided to.”
Parker further emphasized the theme of partisanship and how the future of politics could be where people who identify as neither Democrats nor Republicans end up in political leadership.
“I think the future of politics is independent and nonpartisan. That's what I'm advocating. I think we're at a point where people don't want to be forced into binaries, right? You get into an arbitrary binary of it has to be this or it has to be that,” he says with a twinkle in his eye. “I dare people to be politically non-binary.”
When asked if he had any wisdom to share with those who want to follow in his footsteps, Parker emphasized the importance of building relationships with people.
“I think the quality of politics depends on the quality of relationships with other human beings. So if you want good politics, treat people well,” he said.