Mira Yu is a rising senior at Boston Latin School, where she serves as co-captain of the teams for mock trial, speech and debate, and girls’ swimming. She also serves as co-editor-in-chief of the official school science and literature magazines, Catapulta and The Register respectively. She grew up in the North End for 16 years before moving to the Fenway, where she currently resides. Both her mother’s parents and her father were born in Taiwan and later immigrated to the United States.
Mira has had a longstanding interest in how access to housing, transportation and education impact socioeconomic opportunities. She first learned about the role of local government in promoting equity in these areas after visiting Councilor Sal LaMattina at City Hall in 2012, and her interest in the Council grew after attending the city budget meeting, where she learned about the types of legislative proposals the Council reviews and the factors that inform their deliberations. As co-director of the Youth Lead the Change committee on the Mayor’s Youth Council, Mira has gained experience with channeling community ideas into projects and initiatives around the city.
Mira is particularly interested in exploring how policy changes can diminish housing discrimination and income inequality. In her first place-winning essay for the Boston King Foundation, she explored the idea of overcoming income inequality through changing zoning laws in Boston. Her appreciation of the urgency of these issues and her love for Boston’s communities is what inspires her to learn more from a highly accomplished and driven leader like Councilor Louijeune to help create brighter futures for the people of our city.