I’m Mormon and was a missionary for the LDS church in D.C. I met so many immigrants during that time but I haven’t been able to lobby because we weren’t supposed to express our political beliefs that way. At Spring Lobby Weekend I’ve been able to take my beliefs and express them with my own voice on a stage.
Practicing telling our stories has been so helpful. Being able to stand by the people who are affected is important, to help them tell their own stories and be there to listen—and then to hold them up to policy and see how they compare and where the holes are. I now have tools to go back and foster these ideas.
It’s been a great experience to meet people of faith who support a morality and humanity that apply to everyone. That connection is the most profound thing that I have experienced here.
Maddie is from South Jordan, UT an attends Brigham Young University. Maddie attended Spring Lobby Weekend for the first time in 2018.