The Scoop with Tanya Flanagan

Wesley Knight 0:00
This is a KU NB studios original program. The content of this program does not reflect the views or opinions of 91.5 jazz and more the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education.

Tanya Flanagan 0:19
Good morning and thank you for joining me for the scoop with Tonya Flanagan, I'm so happy you decided to wake up and start your day with me here on the scoop, where we talk about life, joy, funny moments, trending topics and so much more. We promise to keep you in the know and find out what you know. So let's get started. So

Tanya Flanagan 0:47
good morning Las Vegas and welcome to another beautiful day in the desert. Thank you for joining me this Sunday morning. I know we are in the hottest month, probably of the year, but the best time of day is early morning. So hope you have a cup of java or a nice glass of juice or tea or whatever it is that is your fancy. And I just want to say thank you for tuning in to 91.5 KU MB, jasmour for the scoop with me. As always, I try to invite people to the studio to spend time with me who I hope you will find interesting and give you an opportunity to learn what you don't know. So this morning, I'm delighted to welcome Sierra Hernandez, who is the new president of young DEM. So we're going to talk a little bit politics, but just really get to know who the new leader is of this organization of tomorrow's leaders, of young people who are engaged around very serious and significant topics pertaining to things happening in our community and as it relates to what's happening across the country. So without further ado, good morning, Sierra,

Sierra Hernandez 1:46
hello. Good morning. Thank you for having me. It's nice

Tanya Flanagan 1:48
to have you here. I've watched you from afar and watched you work with other people who are very special to me. Predict specifically during the 83rd legislative session, which we just wrapped up, you were an attache for assembly member Danielle Monroe Moreno, who's also chair of the Democratic state party. And I so, you know, having sort of a mentor, because I'm sure, as she is to so many people, she has been to you as well, a role model, a mentor, someone who helped to shape your future, where you are now, where you're headed. Tell us a little bit about who you are, your background, where you come from, and how you found yourself with this interest in the political landscape.

Sierra Hernandez 2:30
Yeah, absolutely. So for just some general information, again, Tiara Hernandez, I like to start off every introduction by being able to share the fact that I am the product of two hard working immigrant parents, specifically from Oaxaca, Mexico, and it's important now more than ever, because it having those roots has really shaped my perspective and shaped the ways in which I approach the issues, the opportunities and the Challenges that in the opportunities and everything else that comes in both my professional and personal livelihood, and with that in mind, I'm also not Battle Born, but surely battle tested. And like many families mine, moved here when I was around 12 for the sake of looking for better opportunities. And that they did, but ultimately, and I'll get into how I came to be within the advocacy movement, but I have and I'm thankful to be to share that I have a wealth of experience when it comes to political campaigns, when it comes to working in nonprofits and advocacy, and more recently, working in state government. But in addition to that, navigating governmental institutions and the complexities that come with that, and ultimately, my experience, or my journey and interests within the world of advocacy, came around when I was around 1617, at the time, the 2016 election was taking place, and I being a child of immigrants, as cliche as this might sound, one of and or stereotypical, one of the many things that was pushed on me is like you're either becoming a doctor, an engineer or a lawyer. And I thought the medical route was the route I was going to go through. And surprise, surprise, it didn't work out. And at the time of the 2016 election, I thought to myself, Well, being a citizen of this country, I thought the best thing I could do was be more informed about the world in which we find ourselves in, and the power that my voice has within this world. And surely, shortly, but surely, I ended up getting involved within local clubs and organizations, at first the Clark County Democratic young dems, and then from there. A handful of other small organizations, campaign serving as an intern and volunteer, and fast forward to today, where I now have the fortune of being the President of the Young Democrats in Nevada, as we're gearing up to do a lot of good and amazing work, we're a month in now and to our first official term, and more recently, just having finished working, as you mentioned, the 83rd Nevada legislative session alongside a really incredible leader within our state assembly member, Danielle Monroe Moreno, who is also also more specifically, served as the chair of Ways and Means, one of the most busiest committees in the state legislature. But ultimately, what keeps me engaged and what keeps me going is the belief that the work that I do, the projects that I take on, all contributes to being able to move the needle, or in some way, shape or form, cause some good. I like to live with the idea that we'll first live life with no regrets, and secondly, do more do leave the world in a better place than you found it, and so far so good.

Tanya Flanagan 6:09
Kudos to you. Congrats. I don't know if I've said congratulations, and I always it is exciting when I see young people who know what they want to do, or have a sense because the space that you've gone into advocacy, fighting for others, challenging injustices, trying to write the course, trying to create access to opportunity, to choices, to fairness, equity, I always say you're wired a certain way. When that is a body of work that calls you passionately, you're wired a certain way. And it's always exciting to me when I see young people who figure out at a young age, this is what I want to do, and then the courage to do it, because you talked about your parents wanting you to go into certain lines of work, medical, law, the things that we grow up learning, Hey, these are the lucrative professions, and one should try to pursue them. Right are you have sometimes the traditional spaces like education, but politics, advocacy, nonprofit work is always seen as passion, right? Yeah, and people don't always see the career path forward or how it sustains you, because a lot of times it is work that you're doing on a volunteer basis, yeah? So you're, you know, holding down your nine to five job, and then you're finding more time. That's how I found myself in the space, but at a young age, and I don't know that at that time, I realized the entrenched passion to work in those kinds of spaces. It just was like because to you, it's just who you are, but when people are on the outside looking in, you see a dynamic young person who's focused and fixed and has a sense of life and purpose at a young age. And so I'm applauding you for having that sense of life and purpose at such a young age, and for making the sacrifice to give back to our community through the young Dems organization. Thank

Sierra Hernandez 8:19
you, and I appreciate that. I think I'll add that I know that everyone has a different path in life, and more than anything, especially amongst young people, especially in your mid 20s. I'm 24 I see it all the time that people like in this age, in this age frame, really are questioning what they're doing with their life, if the decisions that they're making are good ones for the purposes of the future and so forth. And a good chunk of the reason, or good part of the reason, as to why I've been able to have a much clearer sense as to what I hope to do is all contributed in one way or another to our lived experiences. I had to grow up from a very quick age, the age of 12, when I really started working alongside my dad, not because he wanted me to, but because he needed me to. And I always he would always say that, you know, if there's food that needs to be put on the table, it's food that we're gonna have to provide by making the money by working on the weekends, working at late at night and so forth. So our lived experiences and I are strongly credited, and my parents are struggling, credited towards having a good sense of what I hope to do in the future. And funny enough that when I didn't tell my parents that I had switched over from biology to political. Science at the time, and it think, I think it took them six months to like for me to tell them, but by then, I had gotten my first paid small job on a campaign, but a paid job nonetheless. And then now that they've seen all the amazing work that they've done. They're like, Oh, wow, you, you've made

Tanya Flanagan 10:01
this move the needle with this. I know what you're talking about, because when I went off to college some years ago, I remember the orientation on campus, and Professor Lytle was a professor in his political science, so he does our welcome talk, whatever. And I'm just captivated. I'm fascinated. I'm like, I want to major in political science. And everybody around me was like, what kind of job are you going to get political science degree? Right? And I was like, I'm gonna be a politician. What I mean politics? And people are looking at you like, that's not a job, right? That's not a it's not a space, like, it's not real, because they didn't really understand. My peers were like, That's not real. Like, what is that? Right? And so, you know, fast forward, I started off as a business major. Hated it. My mom said, you know, change your major to journalism. And then I had all these credits from taking poli sci because I was fascinated by the subject matter. The long term goal was law school. I was fascinated by all these different aspects, so when it came down to it, I ended up with a dual major in political science and journalism. And so it was just funny to me when you said I changed my major and told my parents, like, six months later, I'm like, I totally understand how that works, but in this political space, realm of politics and advocacy, I want to make sure people have time to understand what the young Dems does, yes, what it's all about?

Sierra Hernandez 11:25
Yeah, absolutely. So to kind of summarize it, and I'll go into detail, but a lot of what we're doing now is mobilizing, engaging and informing Young Democrats about the work that we're doing and the work around the issues that we're doing, I think, at a time like this where people are frustrated and people are passionate about certain issues, and sometimes there, sometimes people might not necessarily Know how to turn frustration or outrage into action. And we hope that here at the young Dems people ages 14 to 35 Yes, as early as 14, because we have our high

Tanya Flanagan 12:12
school to ask you, how young is too young and how how old isn't young enough? So 14 to 35

Sierra Hernandez 12:19
we have a high school caucus. We have caucuses and chartered units at our college campuses, and we're looking to reactivate a lot more of our other caucuses that we that were once active but but aren't as active now that the election cycle has come and gone, and the fact that the legislative session just took a lot of time from everyone, but with all that in mind, we really do hope to meet voters and young people where they are and that can look like many different things, and I'm thankful that we have a board that reflects the diversity of our state, so we are hosting events intentionally within those communities that we need to be in. Last Friday, this past Friday, we hosted a small business canvas where a handful of not just young people, but people of all ages and backgrounds here in Las Vegas, we met we met up in the East Las Vegas, the specific place in the East Las Vegas community, and from there, we all had a list of businesses, and we all had important information about people civil liberties that we were then able to distribute to a handful of businesses across the East Las Vegas community that all in one way or another, serve as community hubs to not just young people, but also young people who have immigrants in their families and so forth. And at a time like this where there is a lot of fear and uncertainty, especially about around someone's status, the least we can do, and this in that respective effort, is make sure that people are well informed about the rights that they have. And it's events like that that we hope to host more routinely, not just in Southern Nevada, but also in Northern Nevada. So now, with us being a month in it's been a long month, a lot of work, but it's all thanks to, again, the amazing board members that we have that all in which and all in one way or another, have very different perspectives and just strengthen us. And I'm just really excited to be able to see what the future has in mind a lot of more planning that's taking place, that's for sure, especially as we close out this year and head into next year, and then get through the primaries and then head towards the general. I'm excited

Tanya Flanagan 14:52
to see that you're there with the fresh perspectives, the uniqueness that you will bring. I. Being the age that I am, you know, the decades that I've been here at this point, I cannot imagine what it feels like in this time to see, to hear the stories of past fighters like John Lewis or someone you know, Dr King, Reverend Jackson, just all these people, even Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton, the different times, Jimmy, just the way it was to the way we are now, and trying to understand where things fit, how people feel. But then now it's also about the creativity of the response. You know what ever it is that people thought used to work or did work in the past, maybe doesn't work anymore. And so strategies look different, engaging, engagement tactics and strategies look different. People are both concerned and exhausted, yep. So they are hoping someone does something. They're surprised at times. Sometimes, I don't know why people are surprised, but nonetheless, they're surprised because I think it a little bit of that I didn't think it would happen to me, or I didn't think whatever, what, whatever occurred would apply to me syndrome, yeah. So I think that's where the surprise comes from.

Sierra Hernandez 16:18
There's a lot to be said on that front, I'll speak first to the frustrations and the exhaustion. I, like many other young people, work throughout the 2024, election cycle, and it was one of the most exhaustive things to date that I've been through. And I know, I know I don't want to do any form of big, major campaign anytime soon, but all throughout the previous election cycle, I just remember the one thing that I always think about is the fact that my Baby brother, who's 11 now, I brought him through I I've been bringing him to all sorts of events just for the sake of him building awareness as well. Um, it's funny, because I think he made a joke in front of lawmakers this past session when he was visiting, they asked, like, what he wanted to do in the future, and he said, you know, I'll be a basketball player, but if that doesn't work, I'll settle for being a politician. And that's how he's very aware now. But I think about my baby brother and the series of the next generation. And I think about more specifically, the fact that I had these hopes that had the election cycle gone a different way? Had we had different results that we still, despite our flaws as a country, can still manage to overcome, and it has, the election cycle definitely tested my faith and politics and my faith within the work that it is that we do, and it took me quite a while. I'm thankful I was able to spend my time just focusing on the legislative session, because it really got to show me the actual, the actual results that come with what happens when you end up with a certain body in the legislature in terms of the political makeup. And I think the one thing that became very evident, especially working for assembly member Monroe Moreno, the chair of Ways and Means. I remember having to hear her hear every day about the concerns that came with all the budget cuts to federal funding and how that would impact not just the state, but also its municipalities. And I remember there were a handful of lawmakers who were just frustrated with the fact that there they had to get creative with the proposals that they had to work on, because the reality is, the state didn't really have much money, and whatever money it did have a lot of lawmakers, especially those within the Ways and Means Committee, had to get creative for the sake of making sure that cuts didn't impact hard the hard working people who rely on them. I think, if I remember correctly, she had mentioned the fact that programs weren't cut so much as they weren't expanded, which is much better than having to face reality completely

Tanya Flanagan 19:34
eliminate and it Yeah, because it means we won't be able to help new people exactly, but we won't turn away people that we're already helping exactly, and it gives you some type of time to figure out how to find a solution, because the population does continue to increase. Being a few doors down from Assembly Member Danielle Monroe Moreno, I'm watching another. Having other privileges in that space as well. I saw the hard work, and I saw the pressure and the hat that she wears, having a bird's eye view, if you will, to that in the role that you played is priceless in terms of really understanding the space that you're in, why you do it, slowly getting a greater understanding of how it's configured, who's affected by different decisions that are made by the legislative body, how the federal component of government factors into state, factors into County, factors into cities, all in six, factors into townships. And I think too the increased, because the lens I saw was the need to make sure more everyday people really understand, yeah, what's occurring, or what's happening, and how it that they are affected. Because I hear people all the time say stuff like, Oh, I haven't really been watching that. I've been tuning into whatever's going on with, for example, the Clark County School District Board of Trustees. And I'm like, No, if you are watching education, then you should watch education at state level, because education at the state level is education at the local level, and people don't always make the connection between those, for example, those two types of spaces, but to you and what you're doing with young dance. How I'd love to hear what your major goal is, or maybe two or three of them in terms of what your major goal is during your term. And want to make sure people know how they can get involved.

Sierra Hernandez 21:38
Yeah, absolutely. I think I have a lot, I have to credit a lot of the people who came before me to really help get the organization where it is now. It is one of the, it is one of the, if not the most successful state chapter under the umbrella of the Young Democrats of America, which is extremely remarkable. And I don't think many people maybe outside of Nevada might realize that just because, I mean, we're in our state, we're in our bubble, but in terms of, well, I pay a lot of my respects to those who came before me, especially people like Maria Nieto, the former president for the organization, who's now running for national position, which we applaud them, and Tanner Hale, who's also done a lot of work here within the state and the organization, now is at a point where we are able to bring it to higher heights than ever before. And really, I my, one of my main focuses is providing a lot more structure for the purposes of now ensuring much more stability, regardless of who's in my position or the position the executive director, because any successful organization should be able to function without without a any organization should be able to function Despite the changes that might take place at a leadership role, with that in mind, though, that my main goal is really centered around three main things. It is increased funding for the organization, increased membership. Currently, we are at a little more than 600 members statewide, and that membership gets updated so they fit within the criteria that we look for, or the criteria within our bylaws and our Constitution, and last but not least, increased awareness and awareness we're doing right now through the opportunities that we're able to provide, through the opportunities that we're able to take advantage of, to be able to share The information good to share information about what we do and who we are. So thank you, first and foremost, for that and increased funding. It kind of goes hand in hand with what I was mentioning regarding trying to build more stability. So working on creating fundraising plans, working on creating structure within our finances and having a better hold on that which we done a good job of. It's just a matter of doing a much better job now and also making sure that we, above all else, increase our membership. We know that there are a lot of young people all across the state and Southern Nevada, Northern Nevada, in our rural areas, all who, in one way, shape or form, want to get involved with this organization, and that's what we plan to do through an increase in programming, not just in events, but also workshops and partnerships with elected officials, much like yourself and others and so forth. And I'm excited to be able to roll those out as the time comes. Outside of that, though, if people choose to want to find more information about who we are and what we do, they can always visit our website, young dems nv.com or visit us on any of our social media platforms, all of which are the same. Young Dems envy. We are fairly active when it comes to. Not just the events that we publish within our platforms, but also the information that we share about things taking place in the world, especially, more recently, the Federal federal legislation that got passed, the big, beautiful bill, there's a lot of impacts that it's going to have negatively towards hard working Nevadans and especially young people. And we made sure to highlight some of that information on our social media platforms, for example, along with the newsletters that we send out. So a lot of different ways in which people can get that information and then stay up to date on the events that we have to join us in person for those actions.

Tanya Flanagan 25:39
We are talking with C her Hernandez, who's the new president of young Dems Nevada, and I want to thank him for being here in the studio today. But I want to also say, as we're talking about what the organization does, and that it welcomes people as young as 14, as old as 35 for parents who might be listening and thinking, what's something that my child could do? If you know this is in your wheelhouse or an area of interest. It's a great way for children to have good experiences, do good sort of community service type of work, develop themselves and their own personalities, begin to understand issues and be engaged. It's a good opportunity to expand, you know themselves, and so for those who are listening, that's a consideration, because I really like the width in terms of ages, of people, of groups, of backgrounds, that organization, like young dems, welcomes to participate in the process of everyday life that's happening around you and happening to you, happening for you, and happening in spite of you. So it may be what you need, it may not be what you need, and it's really important to tap in a lot of times we think, I think for a long time, it was safe to say things could happen around you and you were going to literally be okay. But we're no longer in that type of age, because there was a sense of like mindedness that seemed to to be a running a thread running through the fabric of America. And now that's not necessarily the case. And so I feel like individually people, we need to be engaged and we need to understand what's going on. We're getting into less than the last two minutes of the show, but we need to be engaged. We need to so organizations like young Dems is perfect for young people, having a space to learn regardless of what you want to do. So thank you for spending some time with me this morning. We're getting into the last minute of the show. Anything that you like. Sometimes like to let people know, because I don't want you to feel like it's all heavy. It's all heavy. It's also fun. So I like to sometimes do a quick, rapid fire, okay? Favorite color, burgundy. Favorite movie. Oh god. Favorite actor, Viola Davis, really, that's surprising to me. I

Sierra Hernandez 27:55
remember she said something very beautiful about acting, it being an experience, it being one of the only experiences where you get to live life

Tanya Flanagan 28:03
and live in color. I like that. I like her best group. What you're listening to? We've got 36 seconds who's in your

Sierra Hernandez 28:12
ear. Goodness, listening to La Dona. She's a Chicana artist. A lot of good music.

Tanya Flanagan 28:18
So what I'll say to that, folks, I've never heard her, I'm sure it's great music. Engaging is an opportunity to expand yourself, to meet new people, new young people from all walks of life, all parts of who've gone off to college and come back so young dems, young dems. Nv.com, thank you for tuning in to the scoop with me. Have a great week, and we will see you next time on 91.5k, U, N, V, jazz and more. I want to thank you for tuning into the scoop with me. Tanya Flanagan, and I want to invite you to get social with me. I'm on Facebook and Twitter. My name is my handle, T, a n, y, A F, l, a N, A, G, A N. You can also find me on Instagram at Tonya almais Flanagan, and if you have a thought, an opinion or a suggestion, don't hesitate to shoot me an email to tonya.flanagan@unlv.edu. Thanks again for joining in. Stay safe and have a great week. You.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai