Lessons from interning

I have learned a lot over my four years as an intern at the Community Lawyer’s Office. I started out as a reserved and sheepish 15-year-old. At the time, I lived in a very small world. I was obsessed with pleasing my teachers and peers and, like a lot of ambitious high school students, I wanted to appear perfect, and to pad my resume with impressive-sounding but sometimes empty pursuits. When I landed this internship, I was overjoyed. It was another addition to my college applications. I wasn’t particularly interested in my community. Winsted was the small hometown I was trying to escape. Activism and social justice were other people’s concerns, and I didn’t feel a lot of responsibility as a citizen. I didn’t know at the time that this internship would end up being a lot more than a line on a resume, or that it would change my perspective on the world fundamentally.

Through my work here, I’ve learned about the state of our democracy, and the problems that plague us as communities. I’ve been involved in research and activism on issues like the labeling of genetically modified foods, campaign finance reform and contract law. I stood at fairs and collected signatures for petitions. I went door to door in town encouraging people to vote. This year, my fellow intern, Cecilia Petricone, and I organized a film series, drawing awareness to salient social issues, like hunger and income inequality and plastic pollution. I grew from someone who just did what they were told, to someone with real interest in our world. Young people can’t afford to be apathetic, as hard as we sometimes try. The future is determined by how we choose to act as citizens.

This internship gave me the tools to act. Charlene LaVoie, the community lawyer, is a model of how to be a vigilant and responsive citizen. She uses her law degree to empower others, taking on issues of civic concern that might otherwise fall through the cracks.

She’s given me some powerful insights over the years. Perhaps the most impactful piece of advice I’ve ever received — “Stop apologizing.” She reminds me all the time. She’s not just addressing an unfortunate verbal tick, but my self-defeating habits of thought. I can’t be an effective woman in the world if I apologize for my presence and opinions. I have value that can’t be judged by a college admissions officer, or summarized in a list of awards. I can contribute something genuine in the form of my intelligence and persistence and dedication to the improvement of our world. As a citizen in a free society, I have every right and responsibility to do so.

This internship has given me a new perspective on our town. Winsted is a complicated place, with (like many places) its share of dysfunction, but there are many brilliant, warm people here, and the potential for a vibrant and connected community. We can be proud of our town. Even now, as I’m fulfilling my dream of going to school and living in New York City, I’m still proud of Winsted and happy to come back to it.

Now as the summer is winding down, and I’m saying goodbye to the Community Lawyer’s Office for another year, I thought I’d reflect back and take the time to say thank you to the Nader family and to Charlene LaVoie for this opportunity. I’ll be returning to New York, but I will be back next summer. In the meantime, please continue to look for this intern column in the Journal.

Selena West is an intern at the Community Lawyer’s Office. She is a sophomore at New York University.