Name: Inan Chowdhury
Year: 4th year
Major: Environmental Science. Concentration: Systems and Societies
Her Campus: Can you tell us about your role as USAC Gen Rep 3?
Inan Chowdhury: As one of three General Representatives tasked with the challenge of “representing” 30,000 students of differing backgrounds and needs, I hope to use the privilege I’ve been granted to give a voice to those who have been silenced, marginalized, and disproportionately affected by discrimination. My office functions on three basic principles: INtegrity, INvolvement, and INclusion. We hope our efforts in building awareness, understanding, and solidarity through our programs will allow students to find their own sense of INdividuality and celebrate it, rather than allow themselves to be siloed into the various molds that society tries to fit them into.
HC: What are you currently working on in your office?
IC: The structure of my office consists of four committees: Sigma CHAI, The Bruin Games, Mental Health & Mindful Awareness, and Special Projects, each of which are currently planning a variety of events ranging from sustainability to cultural awareness. I won’t give away too much of what we have planned, but keep a look out for the first-ever “Bruin Games,” a week-long cultural extravaganza with a charity component, “Sunday Fundays” to promote self-care, and a new series called “GR33N SCREENS” that will host a variety of movies to get conversations started about bigger topics, like gender and sexuality, among other great events.
HC: What are you most proud of?
IC: It’s hard to answer this question when I personally haven’t reached all the goals I’ve set for myself and this office, which are constantly being modified. I think personal pride gets in the way of progress, but I can say how proud I am of my staff for coming together and being able to make their visions into reality. We have so much in store within the next quarter and I cannot wait to see the great work this office puts out and the seeds we can plant for future growth. Given such a small budget and short time by which to accomplish our platforms, I know I won’t be able see where these projects will lead after I graduate, but at least I can pave the way.
HC: What other communities are you involved with on campus?
IC: I am currently the External Vice President of the Bangali Students Association on campus and work as a mentorship co-head in the Academic Mentorship and Professional Development component of the Muslims Student Association.
HC: Can you tell us about Sigma Chai? What is it? Where did the idea come from? How can students get involved?
IC: Sigma C.H.A.I. stands for the Coalition of Humans Against Injustice. I jokingly thought of the name my freshman year as a departure from Greek Life, saying there should be a similar organization which brings people together to drink tea and have good conversations. My second year, I actually posted the idea on Yik Yak and hundreds of people upvoted it saying they would be down for the idea. After attending the Students of Color Conference back in 2015, I found a source of empowerment in the caucus-style discussions we had about identity, social justice, and forms of oppression prevalent in many different communities. That’s when the idea of Sigma CHAI really took shape. I wanted to provide a platform for students on campus to:
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Socialize: Discuss these pressing issues on a larger scale between multiple communities and network with individuals outside their own groups.
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Unify: After dialoguing and finding commonalities, we hope to foster a sense of community in the same way Greek Life seeks to, in a fashion more inclusive and welcoming to the greater student body.
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Mobilize: Build the skills to become leaders in their own communities and promote action that goes further than just these conversations.
It is actually one of the main reasons I ran for office. I didn’t think any other outlet on campus would allow the idea to get enough visibility or traction to be successful, so I decided to put myself through the election process. This quarter, we are having a series of talks that happen weekly. We were recently featured in the Daily Bruin for our first event and hope that more students from different backgrounds will attend in the future to share their perspectives.
To learn more and receive updates on when/where our meetings will be, you can sign up here.
HC: How can students get involved in USAC/Gen Rep 3 or share their ideas/feedback with you?
IC: Unfortunately our two recruitment cycles for office staff, which were at the end of Spring Quarter last year and at the beginning of Winter Quarter this year, have both closed, so membership in the office is no longer an option. However, students can email me directly at usarep3@asucla.ucla.edu to give any feedback or simply share their ideas. We are working on a variety of ways students can voice their concerns and share ideas with the office and USAC as a whole, including an online forum where students can anonymously send in any concerns they have with USAC, the administration, or what needs to be done on campus. Otherwise, Sigma CHAI is a great way for students to speak directly to USAC officers that are in attendance, including myself, on such issues.