Author and activist Christine Pelosi was welcomed to LA-100 to speak on the importance of constitutional rights in honor of Constitution Day on Thursday.

Pelosi has many titles. She served as deputy attorney of San Francisco, as executive director of the California Democratic Party, chairperson of the California Democratic Party Women’ Caucus, was elected five times in the Democratic National Committee, co-founded the Military Families Council, and serves on the Stake Holder Board of Young Democrats of America.

The event was co-sponsored by Contra Costa College, The Law Club, Pathway to Law School and The League of Women Voters. Students were attentive as Pelosi spoke on the importance of the U.S. Constitution, and to know what it is about.

‘“We the people,’ this is what we are suppose to be about, this is what America is suppose to be about — the people,” Pelosi said.

She focused part of her speech on getting people to know what’s their call to service, knowing their purpose to do something for their own personal future as well as for the future of their country.

“Each of you are here on campus because you want to send some sort of message to the future. There’s something that you want for your own future,” Pelosi said. “So think, how do we identify our call to service?”

Students were moved by Pelosi’s words. President of The Law Club and Pathway to Law School student Nora Rodriquez said, “She really wants to reach out to people and have them vote and serve whatever purpose they can and help out.”

Part of being an activist is instilling that kind of courage in others, Pelosi said.

CCC student Leslie Yang said Pelosi didn’t just preach about the Constitution, but she told students to follow their dreams and know their call to service. 

The importance of voting was greatly talked about, and Pelosi stressed how each vote counts.

She said change is possible if people vote for what they think is right. If they do not think something is worth their vote then they should still vote anyway — it could make a difference. 

She also discussed recent political issues happening in our country and how they all tie in to the constitution. Issues she said voters should be aware of are police brutality, racial profiling, death penalty, feminist issues and immigration.

“We have racial profiling, we’ve got marriage equality, we’ve got birthright citizenship, just to name three that were on the news this week,” Pelosi said. “You’ve got conservatives who want to amend the Constitution to take out birthright citizenship and there’s an actual debate on whether that should be removed. These are real issues worth fighting for.” 

She said it is OK to take risks early in life and to use your knowledge as a force for good and express your thoughts.

“(Pelosi’s speech) benefits us,” Yang said. “How she says to practice your rights and actually use your voice because you have power. So don’t let (your political power) go to waste.”

The crowd was engaged and Pelosi made sure to keep the crowd interested by speaking on topics about the Constitution’s importance, motivational stories, advice and recent politics issues.

The president of the Law Club seemed pleased with how the event panned out.

“It was a great starting point,” Rodriguez said. “That was the first event that the Law Club (helped) put together and I can’t wait to put on more events together that reach out to the CCC community.”

She said events like Constitution Day help students and their careers by giving them the opportunity to meet inspiring people who are making real changes in the political world.

Pelosi said, “Constitution Day should be everyday” and the people it should represent need to fight for what is right and be prepared to always know what you are fighting for, to know your goals and to always vote because that’s how things begin to change.