By Elizabeth Bock
Staff Writer
Illustration by Angelica Navarro
Staff Illustrator
The Democrats of South Pasadena, a city-wide political club, gathered at the War Memorial on Friday, November 18 to discuss the result of the recent election.
Inspired by the protests and activism around Los Angeles, club president Zahir Robb called the meeting to ensure the community stays involved. Initially, the club hoped to adjourn throughout the month of November in anticipation of a Democratic win, but with the election of Donald Trump, members felt it was important to reconvene.
“Our club needs to energize the community and rally behind candidates statewide that still support our ideas and will fight for them,” Robb said. “This election was really a wake up call for all of us to protect those who will feel disenfranchised by Trump.”
More than 30 club members and residents attended the free forum style meeting to discuss a potential “legal wall” around California. This figurative barrier would stand against any executive policies that would infringe upon given state rights.
The club aims to involve more of the community in local politics in order to represent a greater variety of residents. Since the average age of club members is around 60, the club also wants to bring in more young voices.
“We can’t have robust representation at state or nationally if we don’t build from the ground up in our communities,” city council member Marina Khubesrian said. “This election has told us that we…need to be less partisan and more supportive of our ideas, and that starts with bringing more creativity and youth into these meetings.”
The Democrats of South Pasadena is the oldest democratic club in the Western San Gabriel Valley, and typically congregates once a month in the Community Room of the South Pasadena Public Library. They have yet to set a date for their December meeting.
[poll id=”64″]
