Posted by Sarah Burrows, Legislative Assistant

With all the talk about the inaccessibility of our political leaders, it’s always great to experience someone breaking the stereotype. Today, I was on Capital Hill with a group of high school students from New York who were participating in the Religious Action Center’s L’Taken Social Justice Seminar. We were sitting in the hallway of a Senate Office building, lobbying a staff member from Senator Chuck Schumer’s office about a number of social justice issues.

As a member of the Judiciary Committee, Senator Schumer was unavailable to meet with us himself, since today also marked the beginning of the confirmation hearings for Judge Samuel Alito. The participants had just finished lobbying on the importance of this particular judicial nomination when Senator Schumer walked by, on his way to the hearing. Instead of simply waving and continuing on his way, as many in his situation would have done, the Senator stopped to say hello. He took a few minutes to talk with the participants, and asked what they thought about Judge Alito, specifically asking whether or not they supported his confirmation. As one of the more outspoken members of the Judiciary Committee, Senator Schumer was both surprised and pleased to see that the participates had very strong opinions on this issue. They overwhelmingly let him know their opposition.

What began as a great opportunity for young Americans to lobby on issues they are passionate about quickly became an incredible demonstration of what is good about our political system. Not only did these students have the chance to meet their Senator and express their views about an important issue, but the Senator got to meet a number of his constituents and see first hand that are paying attention, that they are watching what he does and that they truly care about our nation’s future. I’m not sure who was more moved by the experience, the participants or the Senator, but either way this interaction between a politician and the people he represents demonstrates how truly important it is to advocate for what we believe in.