We recently connected with Isabella Alvarez and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Isabella, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
Sitting in a Tennessee legislature can engender discomfort from the extreme and topical bills contended. Most of these apply to our personal lives, with direct impacts on how we go about every day as a Tennessean. And some of these affect the people who aren’t even in the room where this debate occurs, the people who aren’t included in the conversation. Sitting in senate while the lives of undocumented immigrants are threatened is an unjust reflection of civility our state, even more unjust as the only Hispanics in the room. In almost every space of authority, there is rarely a perspective or voice to represent the massive Hispanic community of our state. Because of this, my mother, Melissa Alvarez and I have decided to support the first step to encourage civic engagement and diversity in Tennessee. Among the countless other programs dedicated to buttressing oppressed and minority voices, we engage in harnessing political information, teaching others about the politics behind their rights, opening discussions about their personal wellbeing under these. There is no reason why any Tennessean should be left in the dark about their personal liberties.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
The Tennessee Hispanic Action Network is founded on the process of building on the rich cultural heritage of the Latino community to promote its advancement through advocacy and activism. We believe in positive change in a community that faces experiential, economic, educational, cultural, and linguistic barriers.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
In an overwhelmingly disparate and bipartisan political landscape, conversations are often held at deadlocks with the inclusion of such drastically contrasting opinions. Because of this, we’ve had to learn how to tackle somewhat impossible discussions, thus harnessing empathy in how we deal with political debates. No matter your political ideology, every Tennessean must have a represented voice in their legislature, and that includes all backgrounds. Our goals align with a more progressive worldview, while always including conservative communities for the goal of widespread involvement. Finding compromises in every setting is salient to making progress in Tennessee.
Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?
As a high school student, I always regret not starting this sooner, but I’ve had a lot to juggle. Between school, personal life, extracurriculars, college applications, and TNHAN, learning how to manage time better would have allotted me much more room to work earlier. However, the increased reliance and accommodation of social media was an unexpected help. Social media outreach was an incredible benefit to our events, being one of the main informants and places of widespread interest. In addition, social media allowed us to reach farther audiences, not only the concentrated urban centers of Nashville but across the state, connected by the internet.
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