Josh hails from the great state of Washington, where many believe the cold shoulder was invented. To escape another year of seasonal depression, Josh moved to California to study political science and religious studies at Santa Clara University. During college, Josh spent much of his time involved with grassroots advocacy campaigns to improve public schools, combat youth homelessness, promote LGBT equality and fight hunger in San Francisco’s underserved communities. After graduating in 2006, Josh went back north and joined the public sector as a tax collector for the Washington State Department of Revenue where he perfected the art of calming people down.
Eventually, Josh moved to another Washington—D.C.—to transform his passion for public policy into a fulfilling vocation or, as his friends put it, making a living doing something “activisty.” There, he landed a position with the Human Rights Campaign–the largest national lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender political organization–where he spearheaded student outreach operations and expanded the mission to incorporate the needs of LGBT youth of color.
Josh then made his way to Capitol Hill where he spent more than four years advising U.S. Representative Adam Smith as the congressman’s legislative assistant. In a successful effort to return to the grassroots advocacy side of public policy, Josh and his partner invested in a few stylish yet practical coats and made the trek to Minnesota where the MinnCAN family adopted Josh as its first-ever advocacy manager.
I aspire to be like Archbishop Oscar Romero. Here's why:
Oscar Romero was the fourth Archbishop of San Salvador during an escalation of violence between the military-led government of El Salvador and a coalition of paramilitary guerrilla groups–a conflict that led to the Salvadoran Civil War.
Romero was chosen to lead the Church during the politically tumultuous era mainly because he was soft spoken and had little interest in speaking out against unjust economic and social conditions.
Things changed drastically for Romero after the Salvadoran military tortured and murdered Father Rutilio Grande, Romero’s close friend, for campaigning to release Salvadorans from poverty. Romero discovered the social injustice of the police who refused to investigate the crime and the media that remained silent. From that point, Romero became an advocate for the underserved and leader of a global movement to fight economic and social injustice through nonviolent actions and mass communications. Despite threats from the Salvadoran government and admonishments from his peers, Romero continued to advocate for the voiceless. He was assassinated–shot while celebrating mass a day after he called for soldiers to put down their weapons and join the fight for basic human rights.
As a student naïve to the injustices of the world, Romero’s story inspired me to question social standards and work to remove the obstacles that hinder humanity’s journey to provide equal opportunity for all people.
I get to work with a smart and passionate team dedicated to social justice and advancing what is right in the face of strong opposition.
I attended public schools from kindergarten to eighth grade. During my middle school years, I noticed funding levels forced students to share books in small groups, transcribe worksheets by hand to avoid making copies and share desks designed for a single student. I was on track to attend a public high school facing similar challenges—and graduated only 17 percent of its incoming freshmen.
Through her herculean efforts, my single mother worked a full-time job and two part-time jobs to put me through private high school, which was probably my only chance to escape being a tragic statistic. I cleaned the cafeteria after school and during breaks to help pay tuition. I saw many of my friends from my local public school dropout, work low wage jobs or become incarcerated, while nearly all of my private school friends went on to attend prestigious universities and enter into the comfortable lives that usually follow.
This social inequity is only getting worse, and it is simply unacceptable. That’s why I do this work.
While I consider myself a “math mind,” I am horrible at figuring out how to get from point A to point B. I’m often teased for needing to use my GPS to drive down the street.
In second grade, my teacher asked everyone in the class what we wanted to be when we grew up. Our hands shot up and we yelled, “Fireman!” “Teacher!” “Astronaut!” “Cowgirl!” “President of the United States!” We grew older, and we became more jaded. We found ourselves arguing with our past, “That pipedream could never happen!” When President Obama was elected to be our 44th president, he made a case for second graders everywhere. Regardless of what you look like, where you come from, how much money you might have or what your name might be, we all have the potential to do great work and be president of the United States. We just need to give every kid a chance to prove it.