Fellowship with Thiru Vignarajah's Baltimore City Mayoral Campaign
- Justice and Legal Thought
- May 2, 2020
- 2 min read
By Ellie Gustafson, Justice and Legal Thought
My internship has been an incredibly rewarding experience that has sharpened my writing skills, honed my policy analysis, made me a more effective communicator, and, most importantly, sparked my love for campaigns.
My internship has been an incredibly rewarding experience that has sharpened my writing skills, honed my policy analysis, made me a more effective communicator, and, most importantly, sparked my love for campaigns. I work at Thiru for Baltimore’s mayoral campaign as Head of Outreach. I manage policy development, plan events and coordinate constituent engagement efforts, fundraise, design graphics, and help out whenever need be -- at this stage of the race, it’s all hands on deck. Our staff is truly a family and we all help each other wherever is needed -- so I’m fluent in press communication, social media engagement, and a lot of upper management.
It was like a year-long case study about the deficits and issues in one of the most complex cities in America, and there’s nothing more rewarding than being a part of the solution.
During my time on the campaign I’ve realized that I thrive in a team environment and in a fast-paced, sometimes unpredictable and chaotic work environment. The day-to-day of a campaign is so invigorating and keeps you on your toes -- that’s what’s most rewarding about it as well. I’ve learned so much from Thiru, the candidate, about leadership, and from my bosses about policy, teamwork, and communication.
I have met amazing people, heard their stores, and been welcomed into their homes. They have all shaped my worldview in their own unique way.
Our team is full of policy wonks, so we delved deeper into the specifics than most campaigns. It was like a year-long case study about the deficits and issues in one of the most complex cities in America, and there’s nothing more rewarding than being a part of the solution. I have met amazing people, heard their stores, and been welcomed into their homes. They have all shaped my worldview in their own unique way. I have also made incredible professional connections across all sectors, for which I am very grateful.
This poster stood out to me because I remember seeing this mayoral candidate speak at our MLAW class. So, it is interesting to see the students who took the internship and what they have to do. By viewing this I have learned that underclassmen students while being young can still make a difference in our government. One question I have is how were you able to balance school and working on the campaign?
Hey Ellie!
I also volunteered to help campaign for Thiru for Baltimore and just during my short time learning about his political endeavors and policy platforms, I gained so much. I can't imagine how rewarding this experience was for you! This poster caught my eye because I am familiar with Thiru's campaign and support his movement to focus on crime and corruption because they are the two most prevalent issues in Baltimore currently, preceding education and redlining issues. From your poster, I learned how important field experience is to any craft. You talked a lot about all the hands on, interpersonal work you did for this internship and how that aided in your passion for policy development and political strategy.…
Your internship stood out to me because of the diverse responsibilities and tasks you had during your experience, like managing outreach to supporters, fundraising, graphic design, and writing press releases. I'm definitely interested in politics, so it was interesting to hear about you learning many different aspects of public policy and running a campaign. It's great that you will continue pushing for social justice in Maryland and gaining more political experience while working for Congressman Steve Hoyer's campaign this summer. What was your favorite area you were responsible for on the campaign?
This poster stood out to me because i learned about Thiru's campaign in Mlaw 100 this fall and my brother previously worked on this campaign. I learned the importance of electing a mayor who is committed to ensuring "justice for all" after reading through your poster and the positive social impact this will have on the city of Baltimore. One question i have is do you plan on continuing your internship for Thiru this summer and beyond?
Your internship really stood out to me because of how the problems in Baltimore hit close to home. From your project, I came to learn of how Baltimore is really struggling with taxes, crime rates, and education. I really praise you for joining a campaign to end these problems and help those as community outreach. As the Head of Outreach, would you say outreach is more difficult amid the current pandemic?