In the wake of the new Trump administration, students in Brown Democrats are refocusing efforts on local legislative advocacy, conducting community outreach and reflecting on the current state of the Democratic Party.
Brown Dems Vice President Sylvie Watts ’26 said that taking action is “more important and more necessary” in the current political context.
On Jan. 28, President Trump signed an executive order limiting gender-affirming health care for youth. After the Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence deactivated their Gender Clinic website, Brown Dems took to social media to direct followers to contact the Rhode Island Attorney General's office.
“I think we have to be very responsive on a day-to-day basis based on the concerns that are raised under the Trump administration,” Watts said.
“For Democratic students on campus, it’s very easy to get sad and frustrated with the news,” said Dylan Sciscoe ’25, the caucus director for Brown Dems.
“Every day, there’s a new headline about an executive order or something that the president has said,” he added. “It seems like we are going back as a country.”
Political Director Lily Zamora ’26 hoped that Brown Dems would be a space for students to learn about and voice frustrations with the new federal administration and the recent flood of executive orders.
Leaders of the group also described the central role of their caucus system in their spring semester plans, with groups focused on education, gun violence, reproductive rights and climate change.
Brown Dems’ education caucus plans to support bills on postsecondary tuition assistance and bilingual education access, Club President Mahir Rahman ’26 said. Other caucus groups are in the process of finalizing their legislative priorities.
Watts said a shift to focusing on local politics is necessary, citing “a limit to how much (the club) can do in response to Trump’s administration.” She added that legislative advocacy on a state level could combat rollbacks of federal protections.
Zamora also emphasized the importance of local action.
“Just because we’re in a blue state doesn't mean that we’re immune to a lot of the actions that are happening right now,” she said.
Sciscoe said that the group’s legislative advocacy usually involves offering support to state legislators for particular bills, connecting them with relevant local organizations and submitting testimony. Their legislative training session, which is planned to be held in the next few weeks, will aim to equip caucus members with the skills needed for legislative advocacy.
According to Sciscoe, caucus legislation selection is a collaborative process, where caucus members use resources such as the R.I. Bill Tracker website to explore current legislation.
“We really want this to be a process where everyone has skin in the game,” Sciscoe said.
Leaders also shared plans to expand their legislative advocacy beyond Rhode Island’s borders, with an emphasis on legislation in the home states of caucus members. Rahman argued that new legislation in these states can have national consequences.
Brown Dems’ leaders emphasized the importance of internal criticism within the Democratic Party.
Rahman believes this lack of self-criticism contributed to election losses. He added that the student group plans to start a dialogue around issues such as the role of campaign funding, international affairs and overall attitudes within the party.
He expressed hope that members of Brown Dems “understand that the party can be a problem itself, and that it needs to change.”
The Democratic Party has recently been labeled as “fractured” as they try to organize opposition to Trump’s policy agenda.
Amid divisions in the Democratic Party, Zamora said Brown Dems align most with the party’s progressive wing.
Still, Sciscoe said the party divisions on a national level do not affect how the student group currently operates.
“We try our best not to let any division get to us,” he said.
Annika Singh is a senior staff writer from Singapore who enjoys rewatching Succession and cheating on the NYT crossword.
