Guest speaker and Former Executive Director of Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs at CSU Los Angeles, Raphael Sonenshein on LA City Government.
Everywhere we go, there are relationships everywhere. Humans can not be alone because humans are a social species. This week has shown me what the power of human relationship really is. As I got sick for the majority of the days, I was having a difficult time trying to pick myself back up and attend work. Days passed, and I was not getting any better. When I mentioned how sick I was to my family, they took the initiative to drive three hours and stay over for an entire week to take care of me. Besides that, my friends were also running around stores, looking for medicine. My supervisors were constantly checking up on my health, ensuring that I was getting better. The constant checkups and care from work, families, and friends made me realize how important it is to build relationships because they are the people that will have your back whenever you are in need.
This ties into one of our conversations when the Former Executive Director of Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs at CSU Los Angeles, Raphael Sonenshein, spoke in one of the CAUSE workshops. One of the topics that stood out the most was interracial coalition, which is referred to as the collaborative efforts of individuals and or groups from different ethnic back backgrounds working together to address a certain issue. Learning about this, collaborative efforts of groups typically are not randomly formed by themselves. It is often the relationships of the individuals who share a connection and are willing to come together to resolve an issue. It is the strong bond that individuals have for each other that motivates them.
One example which Raphael Sonenshein brought up was resolving homelessness. The key to resolving homelessness in cities is usually based on how well cities are being governed, whether leaders can get other people to do what they want, and how strong your relationship is with the people. In all of these resolutions, the main issue is that there is a lack of trust in human relations. Supposing if there was trust between relations of local leaders and the people with the city governed better, homelessness wouldn’t be as big of an issue. If there were strong bonds and trust between local leaders and the individuals, believing that leaders are making changes to prevent homelessness and individuals willing to compromise, there would be no homelessness.
CLA Interns learning about LA City Government.
This has taught me that relationships are everywhere. The relationship and connection that you have with people are the keys to wherever you want in life. They are what emotionally support us, the social connection bridge to our success, the mental and physical support, the teacher to our personal growth, and our happiness and fulfillment. Altogether, they are the support that enhances the quality of our lives in numerous ways.
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not reflect the views or positions of CAUSE or the CAUSE network.
Written by Pa Houa Lee, Leadership Academy 2023 Intern.
The CAUSE Leadership Academy (CLA) for students is a nine-week, paid, internship program that prepares college undergraduates to lead and advocate for the Asian Pacific Islander community on their campuses and beyond.