THE TIMES-DELPHIC Students make their voice heard in Des Moines

invested in what goes on at the Capitol.”

Most students on Drake’s campus are aware of being ‘Drake busy.’ But a handful of students are balancing and prioritizing their day to make it to the Iowa State Capitol quite frequently this semester.

From teachers’ rallies to women’s marches, collective bargaining rallies and immigration ban protests, students have found plenty of ways to be engaged off Drake’s campus.

“It’s important to me to have a position where I’m fighting for these issues,” said Grace Rogers, a senior public relations and political science double major. “Part of it is just making sure I’m staying up to date and getting the experience with these issues as they happen.”

Rogers has attended subcommittee hearings at the Capitol on a bill looking to discourage sanctuary cities and campuses, as well as collective bargaining public hearings on changes to unions’ ability to negotiate pay, insurance and other benefits with state employers. She also advocates for Planned Parenthood; she started interning there in January.

Rogers said she joins causes against legislation she feels targets specific groups of people.

“It’s important that everybody has the same opportunities as everyone else,” Rogers said. “When you’re little they teach you the golden rule, ‘Treat others how you want to be treated.’ That’s part of my guiding value. As part of that, most of these bills are targeted at treating a subgroup of people differently from everyone else.”

Josh Hughes is frequently found on Capitol Hill, as well. The sophomore is working as a clerk for representatives and splits his time between class and paperwork. Yet, he said he tries to make it to every protest and rally he can.

Hughes has attended an Iowans for public education rally, the public hearing on collective bargaining, the subcommittee on the sanctuary city bill and hearings on defunding Planned Parenthood.

“I’m from Iowa, so I have a really strong connection with this state,” Hughes said. “I’m deeply

While Hughes’ roots are deep in Iowa soil, he said those from out of state also have an obligation to make Des Moines and the state better.

“It’s really important to get off campus and into the community,” Hughes said. “Regardless of whether you’re going to stay in Iowa or not, or if you’re from

Iowa or not, when you’re at Drake you’re basically a citizen of Iowa for four years. It’s important that we as Drake students get out of that bubble and work to help this community that we’ve chosen to come inhabit for four years.” Rogers has taken this belief to heart. Originally from Lenexa, Kansas, Rogers said she thinks her advocacy work should take place in the middle of Iowa.

“I vote in Iowa, which is part of the reason why I think it’s important my activism happens here,” Rogers said. “These are people that I voted for, and these are people who are supposed to represent me.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2