The concept of organizations (such as think tanks, consulting firms, etcetera) can have

both a good and bad reputation. The issue with these is that big corporation profoundly influence

them, and influential people with deep pockets have high involvement with such organizations.

Sadly, those who come from low-income backgrounds don’t have the same capabilities to share

their needs to help make policies for them. I do see the possibility of smaller think tanks bringing

a new wave of policies that will slowly but surely impact our government to help those who are

fighting for their human rights.

As explained by the American Enterprise Institute that we visited, a thinktank is an

institute, corporation, or group organized to study a particular subject (such as policy issue or a

scientific problem) and provide information, ideas, and advice. These types of workplaces are set

in place to help people who work in the government field understand the population and general

public’s needs as well as analytical information for implementing policies. As useful as these

thinktanks might be, Schlozman’s journal, Louder Chorus – Same Accent: The Representation of

Interests in Pressure Politics, argues that there are inequalities of political voices: “The set of

organized political interests is organized principally around economic matters and, in this arena,

the representation of business is dominant… Organizations that advocate on behalf of the poor

are relatively scarce, and organizations of the poor themselves are even harder to find.” With this

reading, it brought up mixed feelings for me because my initial impression for a think tank was

to help analyze and evaluate issues for the people, from the people. However, we did have the

opportunity to talk to a lobbyist, Dan Granfield, who shared about his experience working for

Allegiance Strategies in which he helps advocate for issues such as DACA, Freedom to Believe,

Sink the Joans Act, etcetera. These were all small startups initiated by his employer who wanted

to help people because he realized that the poor population did not have the same resources as
others did in the political setting. He went on to share that your political party doesn’t matter if

you want to start making small differences in your community and government. His consulting

firm and thinktank is implementing small changes; they might not be as grand and faced-paced

as other organizations, but they use every effort that they can to fight for human rights.

Schlozman’s journal, Louder Chorus – Same Accent: The Representation of Interests in

Pressure Politics, ends with the following quote: “Moreover, considering lobbying expenditures

shows that, even when there is organized representation, constituencies with deep pockets are

able to multiply their lobbying presence in [a] way that impecunious ones cannot.” This

conclusion makes me aware that there might not always be a way to change the world around me

when it comes to big influencers getting involved with politics. However, we can all try our best

to be more like Dan Granfield who advocates and promotes positive change for the low-income

population who seek guidance in our politics. If more organizations can be like Allegiance, there

might be a chance for the voiceless to be heard in our government finally.