By Alexandria Baker, Special to The New Tri-State Defender
Meet Megan Wassef, chairperson of the Memphis Youth City Council and District 9, Position 1 representative. A senior at St. Mary’s Episcopal School, Wassef is the Government Club president and the general assembly president of the Model United Nations. She’s also a delegate for the Youth Legislature, senior class vice president and regional ambassador for Girl Rising, which works to educate communities about women’s issues worldwide.
Alexandria Baker: Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Megan Wassef: I’m a first generation Egyptian American and I’m very interested in politics and foreign affairs. I’m also very active in my church, where I’m president of a youth group and I’m a member of the Greek Dance Troupe.
A.B.: Are you from Memphis?
M.W.: Yes.
A.B.: What do you think is special about Memphis that people might not be aware of?
M.W.: I think a lot of people when they hear Memphis…think of it as a dangerous place. Or, they just think of Elvis Presley. But I think that Memphis is unmatched as a community. You can always find people from any neighborhood of the city going to an event and being together. We’re supportive of our sport teams, like the Memphis Grizzlies, and we also come together for the betterment of our city. I believe we’re a city that’s willing. If we see a social issue we don’t like, we’re open to change and I think that is really important. I think we’re a great city with a lot of good in the community.
A.B.: I agree. Memphis is indeed a diverse city. So, how important do you think it is to build character?
M.W.: I think good character is really important. I also think that people have their character and ultimately it’s how individuals use their character to help others. In addition, it is important to continue to build on good character. As a community it’s important to showcase that everybody can add something to the table.
A.B.: What problems do you want to solve in the world?
M.W.: Something I’m really passionate about is women’s equality – globally, nationally as well as locally. In our city, I would love to see more women involved in the decision making of our society and showcasing how talented and amazing we really are.
A.B.: What do you want your obituary to say?
M.W.: I would like it to say that I was a determined person who cared about the world. She wanted to leave the world better than she found it. And most importantl, she was able to make a difference.
A.B.: Why did you decide to run for the Memphis Youth City Council?
M.W.: I wanted to be a part of real change in the community. I kept feeling frustrated with how many issues were being ignored because youth weren’t given a platform to fix them. So when the program presented itself, I knew that I had to run.
A.B.: What would you like to see the Memphis Youth City Council accomplish?
M.W.: I hope we can deal with issues such as education and domestic violence, but we also plan to have a forum to hear what issues that youth all over the city face so that we can help address some of those issues.
(Alexandria Baker is an undergraduate student at the University of Memphis majoring in journalism. To contact #MillennialsNow, email Alexandria Baker at youthonthemove@gmail.com.)
