St. Louis, MO - February 2023 - In this video story for the Gephardt Institute for Civic and Community Engagement we hear from former Congressman Richard A. Gephardt, Stephanie Kurtzman and several students involved with the Institute about work the institute is doing to promote democracy in continuing the Congressman's legacy.  

A transcript to the video is below.

Richard A Gephardt 

My career in public office is coming to an end, but the fight is never over.

Paul Schankman

What sounded like a curtain call was really just the beginning of a second act. After a lifetime devoted to harnessing the power of democracy to improve the lives of others, Dick Gephardt decided to invest in young people and empower them to make a difference.

Richard A Gephardt

I wanted to come back to where I grew up and try to make sure that we were producing citizen leaders that could be in this community and in other communities around the country.

Paul Schankman

And that's why in 2005 he established the Gephardt Institute for Civic and Community Engagement based in his hometown of St. Louis on the campus of Washington University.

Richard A Gephardt

All of us have to do whatever we can do to protect this democracy.

Paul Schankman

The Gephardt Institute is not a think tank. It's an action tank. Inspiring students to become the sort of citizens who ask, what can I do and what can we do together rather than how did this happen?

Bethany Copeland

The mission of the Gephardt Institute is important to me because we need to be engaged and not just in national politics, but really locally.

Priya Anand

I think a lot of students are passionate about policy issues and passionate about things that are going on in politics right now cuz they all affect us but don't know how to get started in terms of making any kind of impact. And I think the Gephardt Institute is a great place to get your bearings.

Richard A Gephardt 

We have a whole program here with Washington U and the Gephardt Institute to encourage, help motivate people here to vote. And we've had great success. We're getting great numbers and it all goes back to just education and it's helping people understand the process.

Kelly Rojo Reyes

Seeing how people were going to vote at the gym, that was definitely really important because I think that's something that wasn't really emphasized in my life when I was growing up.

Richard A Gephardt

If you're worried the country is broken, the democracy is broken, then only you can solve it.

Andrew de las Alas 

Democracy is definitely under threat. When I've tried to talk to people about my experience through Gephardt, it's an opportunity for me to make that positive impact while also showing other people their avenues for success and how they can actually make their voices heard.

Stephanie Kurtzman

On a practical level, what we're doing is we're educating students to be prepared, informed, involved, engaged for their life, in civic life. And it's not just during their time while they're students. It's about taking the ethos of civic engagement and civic leadership with them wherever they go next.

Alex Shing

Being part of this program has actually given me a lot more hope, seeing that I'm not just the only one, and this is not just a one person battle, but we're kind of like all in this together to try to tackle these large issues and that's very encouraging.

Richard A Gephardt

You are my dream that young people would carry this forward to make it better than it's ever been. Every time I come here for a meeting with students, I am blown away. I'm really grateful for what we've been able to achieve. So we'll keep doing this for as long as we can and when I pass on, I hope others will fill in and keep it going. Whether it has my name on it or not, that is an important, it's the effort that counts.

Stephanie Kurtzman

We need to invest in our young people and pass the torch to them. We are carrying forward the values of what it looks like to listen to one another, to learn with people, work across differences, move difficult issues forward, and listen to the voices of the community, of the people who know their experience best. That is what I see Dick Gephardt to be about. That's what he stands for. That's what we stand for.

Richard A Gephardt 

For an America that works for the many, not just for the few. For an America that lifts all those who've been locked out and left out of our bounty and promise. The dream is what matters. The fight is what it's all about. Thank you.