Julián Castro, former 2020 presidential candidate, former secretary of housing and urban development, mayor of San Antonio, Texas, and author of An Unlikely Journey: Waking Up from My American Dream sat down with the Harvard Political Review for a discussion on the state of Democratic politics today, especially in crucial states such as Texas and the future of the progressive movement.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.
Harvard Political Review: Throughout your career, you’ve broken several precedents, one of the most significant of them being the fact that you were the youngest member of President Obama’s cabinet. In relation to the idea of the youth being in positions of power, the youth now often looks at politics and lacks hope, in the sense of lacking hope in growth, progress, and in participation, and there’s this disconnect between what people in power see the world as and what the youth sees the world as. So given this situation, how do you think that the active, often change-seeking youth of today should navigate that challenge?
Julián Castro: Be bold. Speak truth to power and realize that your idealism is a strength, not a weakness and that we need the idealism and the energy of youth now more than we have in a long time. We need to find ways to channel that energy, that idealism, that intelligence into productive ways to make a change. My other piece of advice would be ‘Don’t wait your turn, You have a lot to offer.’ So whether it’s taking on a public service role, or influencing public policy from behind the scenes, or doing it from the private sector or nonprofit sector, find a way to make change, and be committed to it.
HPR: Is that where you also think the progressive movement in the future should be headed towards given the backlash that the progressives are facing in the federal government, and that Conservatives, often in the South, are moving forward with anti-LGBTQ legislation, anti-abortion legislation, etc. As progressives navigate this scenario that often seems hopeless, where do you think they’re headed?
Julián: This moment is where progressives need to provide that home base! By speaking up, they need to let people know there’s another more inclusive vision for America than what conservatives are offering. And maybe most importantly, by running for office, helping candidates, and contributing in every single way they can to make a vision of change.
HPR: What is your perspective in terms of the future of the Democratic Party in Texas?
Julián: Texas is moving in a good direction. During the Trump years, Democrats gained two congressional seats, 2 state Senate seats, and 12 house seats, and many of the suburbs of big cities turned blue. It’s also a huge state. And so it takes a little bit longer than a lot of other places for that. But it is happening, and I’m confident that in the years to come, it’s going to continue to move: Maybe not as quickly as some would like but I think overall it’s going to be fairly quick.
HPR: In states like Georgia, Texas, and Arizona after the 2020 election, there have been so many voting rights laws that have tried to subdue voting rights in several parts of the state. How do you think this will impact the youth’s participation in the elections infrastructure?
Julián: Young people have the biggest stake in decisions that are made right now simply because they’re gonna have to live with the consequences for the longest time. They also are a largely under-tagged political force in Texas and in our country. And my hope is that the hateful backward legislation on abortion, voting rights, on racial justice, that Republicans have pursued in Texas will backfire, it will motivate young people to get out there and vote to run for office themselves; it will push them to use their voice and their ability to change things quickly.
