On August 4th, I got on
a plane and left behind DC and a spectacular summer as a scholar in the Washington
Leadership Program. As I came back on the flight, I reflected about what the summer had
meant to me, but as I wrote that reflection, I had no clue how much this
experience had truly transformed me.
The day after I got
back home, the nation was struck by a terrible tragedy: the shooting in a Sikh
Gurdwara in Wisconsin. As I watched the news, I was drawn to tears. How could
it be that I had spent my whole summer talking about embracing our South Asian
and American identities, giving back to our nation, and the great strides that
have been taken by our community, only to come home to the news that innocent
people had been targeting merely for looking different, believing in a
different faith? The Wisconsin shooting is something that we may never
understand, but sitting at my dining table, I realized that I had to do
something to honor the lives of the people who were lost. I realized that the
summer in DC had given me the skills, networks, and courage to stand up and do
something; if not me, who? As president of the South Asian Students Association
at our university, I organized an official sympathy letter from Ohio State, which
was signed by numerous students, faculty, and staff, including our university
president, Dr. E. Gordon Gee. Later, once school got started, I worked with
other Asian American faculty and students to organize several reflections and
discussion events about what happened in Wisconsin and it connects to hate on
our own college campus. Now I’m working with university administrators and
fellow students to organize a No Place For Hate Week, which will hopefully take
this dialogue to a campus-wide level and raise awareness about racism and hate
at our university.

I can honestly say
that without the WLP, I may not have done any of this. I would have thought
that someone else would surely take action. I would have accepted the Wisconsin
shooting as a tragedy and moved on with my life. However, as a WLP scholar, I
was given the skills I needed to launch this type of campaign, and the program
attuned me to my own responsibility in these situations and abilities. I could
no longer be silent after meeting so many inspiring people who worked hard
every day to make a difference. Hearing their stories had taught me one
invaluable lesson: there’s nothing magical about the people who chose to fight
for a cause or take a stand. You don’t need anything more than an idea and the
willingness to talk about it to everyone until you find the people with the resources to make it happen.
So here I am, just
four months later, telling you that this was one of the best experiences of my
life. The Washington Leadership Program gave me professional work experience,
allowed me to meet countless hardworking individuals who are doing amazing
things every day, helped me experience the joy of giving back, and gave me the
courage to take on change, one step at a time. Coordinating a response to the
Wisconsin shooting is just one small example of how the WLP has made a
difference for me, and I could sit here all day telling you more.
So if you’re a student, thinking about applying to this amazing program,
don’t even think twice. Take the leap and become a part of the WLP family.
Suparna Reddy
The Ohio State University
WLP 2012 Alumni