It’s Her Right

“And … publish!”

I watched as the screen loaded and displayed a successful publishing message. When I sat back, I breathed a sigh of relief — finally, my hard work was bare to the world. I looked at my website with pride. The words “It’s Her Right” stared back at me.

My name is Akshaya Aalla, and I’m a 16-year-old education and equity activist from Rocklin, California. In 2022, I started the nonprofit It’s Her Right, an initiative dedicated to battling the gender gap in our democracy and inspiring more young women to pursue political careers. By planning global, free seminars, opening chapters internationally, and drafting original legislation targeted toward the youth voice, my team and I aim to create an environment where the new generation of young women feels empowered and ready to run for office, all while being equipped with the tools and resources that they need to succeed in this male-dominated field.

As a child, I tried every extracurricular activity imaginable, from piano lessons to gymnastics. Yet, nothing stuck with me until I participated in the California Association of Student Councils’ (CASC) Student Advisory Board on Legislation in Education Conference (SABLE) as a ninth grader. I registered for the annual conference after a suggestion from a family member, expecting this to be a one-time event. However, my experiences during the conference fascinated me and drove me to discover my passion. During the conference, I wrote an original proposal regarding socioeconomic equity, presented it to the California Assembly Committees on Education, and then watched as the CASC team worked to implement the proposal into California State Law. Seeing the behind-the-scenes of this process and working directly with legislators who all had the same vision as me made me realize that this is my future.

After the conference, I immediately dove into the world of education policy and advocacy. I got involved in the California State Youth Council, joined CASC as a Region Cabinet member, and joined my school’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion team. As I got deeper into the world of policy, I noticed the lack of female representation in government. I did some research and found that less than a third of our elected officials are women, even though 51% of our population is female. I decided I needed to do something to address this issue, and that’s where the idea for It’s Her Right was born.

For months, I worked to develop a program to provide more young women like me the opportunity to experience the same opportunities with education advocacy that I had. It’s Her Right plans seminars to foster a sense of community and teach young women how to participate in politics. We also sponsor and co-sponsor legislation from around the world that targets young people and pushes forward bills that will help the leaders of tomorrow. Our biweekly blog educates the population about the women’s rights movement and teaches people about significant leaders in women’s activism and politics.

The day after I published my website, I woke up to a notification that someone had already filled out the form to join the It’s Her Right community. I couldn’t believe my eyes: The mission was already resonating with people. Slowly, new members began trickling in over the next few weeks, and my pride and enthusiasm grew with every notification. When I woke up to the notification that the It’s Her Right community had grown to over 100 members, I was over the moon. I had built a community of over 100 young, like-minded women who all believed in my mission and wanted to work to change our political system.

Now, It’s Her Right has a community of 150+ members, all women dedicated to creating change and battling the gender gap in politics. I’m excited to see where this journey takes us all next. You can join this community, too: Find It’s Her Right at itsherright.org and at @itsherrightofficial on Instagram. If you are interested in attending It’s Her Right’s FREE, VIRTUAL seminar on October 28, please learn more here! You will hear from passionate women in the advocacy field and learn how to be a powerful female leader in your community. Register today!