[It's the Interns] Meet Esther Lim

It is time to meet our AMAZING Interns!

Advancing Justice-Atlanta Interns are here and "It's the Interns" series goes in-depth about who is working behind and in front of the scene to Build Power for Good in the South!

·    Hello! Tell us little about yourself

Hi, my name is Esther and I am a rising senior at New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study. My concentration has yet to receive a solid name, but it’s a combination of legal studies, economics, and political and social theory. I’m heavily involved in activist fronts of all sorts, namely those regarding unfair housing policies, unequal pay across races/genders, mass incarceration/police brutality, climate change, and the privatization of education. Aside from that, however, I work as a graphic designer and I love to read, cook/eat everything, do yoga, and watch my shows.

·    What made you decide to apply for this internship?

I firmly believe, as Chief Justice Earl Warren once said, “Citizenship is man’s basic right, for it is nothing less than the right to have rights.” I applied for this internship because I want to do what I can to create a legal/political/social environment in which citizenship (the right to have rights) can become more universal and more effectively utilized by those who have it.

·    What is your expectation and what would you like to get out of the internship experience?

I hope and expect to 1) learn about immigration and immigrant life in Georgia and in general, 2) learn how to empower and engage with these communities that have been largely disenfranchised and forgotten/neglected, 3) make these communities and their struggles more visible to the rest of the population, 4) become more deeply aware and spread awareness of the policies that affect these communities, and 5) gain significant experience in how I/we may most effectively and efficiently initiate positive change.

·    Tell us your personal narrative on being Asian in America

Living and participating in two cultures - neither of which I felt I fully fit into - yielded a lot of identity crises for me. Eventually, however, I came to recognize my dual cultural membership as a strength, a unique perspective that allowed me to more clearly understand and value certain experiences and struggles that are often forgotten or widely unacknowledged.

·    What role would you like to play in Asian American Community in the future?

I don’t know if there’s a specific role I’d like to fill, but I hope to voice the concerns and opinions of those who may not have the resources to do so, to fight for their rights and inclusion within the political sphere, and to work to bridge the gaps between the Asian American community and other communities of color. 

·    What is your song of the year?

It doesn’t have an appropriate name, but it’s by Rihanna <3