Washington, D.C. is an awe-inspiring city. Once you look through the surface of tourists and street vendors, you truly see the magic that Pierre Charles L’Enfant, the Frenchman who laid the foundations for the city, attempted to impress upon the American citizen. It is not the National Mall, or the monuments, that are the source of this magic; one can find monuments in any city. Moreover, it is what those buildings house. It is the work that goes on everyday inside the halls of the Capitol, or the meeting rooms of lobby groups and congressmen that emanates that magic. It is here one can find the system of government of the most powerful nation in the world working at its best.

News headlines claim everyday that America’s way of life is entering a “crap-shoot.” It is either that we find a level of comfort for our financial woes, or we’re “through.” To this, I beg to differ. Clearly, we have challenges to overcome, agreements to be agreed upon and compromises to be struck, but this is nothing new; and certainly not something indicative of failure. I have had the good fortune to work for a lobby group whose function is to safeguard the freedoms of religion and the functions of American government, by fighting for a separation of the two. I’ve witnessed first hand, and come to understand, that America is certainly is not on a track to failure.

The following is a testament to that statement. The other week, representing the lobby group I work for, I attended a coalition meeting on educational policy. It was a panel-styled meeting, with a member of the Department of Education, a lawyer from the NAACP (the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), and an expert on education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison amongst its list of speakers. The aim of the meeting was to discuss and celebrate the progress made in recent anti-bullying efforts in schools across America. Believe it or not, there is still progress to be made in this area of legislation, especially amongst the population of LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender) students who face perpetuated harassment. If America was failing, then this meeting would not have taken place. Why? Simply because students are not represented in congress (due to the fact that one must be at least 18 to vote). The function of American law is to serve as an advocate of the minority, and in this capacity it is still “alive and well.”

But, there is one grander, and more powerful concept that I’ve come to understand that contributes to this “magic.” It is the fact that with the proper resources, and efforts, change is possible to pursue, and even more importantly, likely to occur. One last beautiful thing about D.C. is the amount of “grassroot” organizations that exist and thrive within its city limits. The purpose of these organizations, similar to third parties in the spectrum of politics, is to serve and advocate for specific interests. If your “cup of tea” is to fight for reform in the field of technology, there is an organization for you, and if not, one is able to be formed. If change is what you pursue, than quite possibly, it is being done, or if not yet, waiting for you to take charge. D.C. is quite literally, a city of change, and of the opportunity to pursue that change.