Barragan representing the 44th district in california, a democrat. Tell us what you were doing before you ran for office. Well, i was serving on the city council where i lived in hermosa beach. I was practicing law. I had just gotten out of a fight, fighting an oil company that wanted to drill 34 oil and water injection wells into the santa monica bay. So thats a long fight and just recovering from that before i got into this race. Why law . Why did you go into law practice . So when i was a kid my parents were poor. And my mom said youre a doctor or a lawyer. Thats the only way youre going to get out of this world. And when i see blood i want to pass out. So it was pretty easy for me. Why did your parents say that . Why do they have the outlook . You know, they just you know, they were not educated. My mom had a third grade education. From what she saw, you know, she came up with that. I dont really know how that happened. Your parents immigrated from mexico. Is that right . Both of them, yes. What was that like for them and what impact do you think that had on them and how they raised you and your siblings . They came here for a better life for their children. So we would have that opportunity. And you hear the stories about how they struggled when they got here. And how they were working hard to make sure that we could go to college. And, you know, latino families, its customary that you take care of your parents. And so that was one of their hopes. And for me, seeing their struggle has their own service, my father was a tv repairman. Sometimes he would go and fix tvs and people would say i cant afford to pay you. He would say thats okay. That was his form of service. So for me, its always been about paying back what i was able to get. And so that has had a huge impact. Now that ive made it, it has been about what can i do to help create opportunities for others . And expand that opportunity. Because in my district, only 10 of students go on to college. What about your siblings . You were one of 11 . I am the youngest of 11. Yes. What was that like growing up . It was a very packed house all the time and very loud. I sometimes speak loud. People say im right here. Its okay. So it had quite an impact. It made me when i got to when i graduated from high school, it made me want to go away. And live in a small town. So i actually went to davis for my first year of undergraduate. Which was very different than los angeles. But came back after a year. My father was ill at the time. Was your family able to join you for the swearing in . Yes, we had about 14 members of my family come out. So it was a big group. And it was my mothers first time in washington. Shes never been here before. So that was real special. What was her reaction when she found out you won, what was it like for her to be here at the swearingin for her youngest to become a member of congress . It was pretty emotional. I mean, to have my mom come and shes very emotional. She cries a lot. And then i cry. There was a the lot of that happening when i won and coming out here. She was scheduled to have hip surgery. And she put that off so that she could be here for the swearing in. What was the immigration process like for your parents to come to the United States and then how do you think that shapes your outlook on immigration policy . So i remember as a kid when my mom was studying for the exam, my father was a permanent resident. He never became a citizen. I didnt learn that until after he passed. He passed when i was 23. My mother, di do remember studying with her as a kid. I would ask her the questions. And how many stripes are on the flag . How many stars . And so i saw firsthand as a kid what she was doing. I didnt quite understand at the time until i got a little older. And know firsthand because im an attorney and i represented immigrants that were in danger of being deported how important it is. So seeing her go through it, seeing her become a citizen, shes a huge voter. Always believes in making sure she votes. Really impacted me and in my ability to not only vote but really to understand the importance of what its like to have the privilege to be a citizen here and because ive been a lawyer, ive seen people being deported, i have family here who has come. A lot of them stayed at our house when we were growing up. Theyve been tru the process. Some still living in the shadows. Others are the products of daca. So immigration is not something im learning, i live immigration. That for me makes it very personal. Gives me a unique perspective which is important because in my district being 70 latino. For your siblings, did some of them migrate with your parents or were you all born here . We werent all born here. I have two brothers who were born in mexico. So what was the process like for them as well . Theres an age gap between my parents. They were from my mothers first marriage. I didnt i dont remember witnessing what that process was like for them. I just remember my mother going through her process. And this is something you plan to work on out here . Absolutely. You know, i ran on the fact that we need Immigration Reform. Now when i was running, i think the we all believed there would be a different outcome. And so i think the objectives have changed a little. The goals have changed a little. As opposed to getting comprehensive Immigration Reform, i think the focus is how do we protect people that have come out under daca . How do we protect folks who have been made promise. Were going to continue to focus to get comprehensive Immigration Reform but given the status of the houses and the president , its going to take a little longer i think. Talk a little bit more about your district. What does it look like . Who lives there . What do they do . So the district is runs from san pedro and the port of los angeles and then goes through working class areas, compton, carson, watts into south gate. Its 70 latino. And its very diverse. We have the port of l. A. In the district. We have a lot of longshoremen. Immigrants across the area, croatian community, italians, mexicanamericans. And so for me, its actually a benefit that i speak spanish when i was campaigning to be able to talk to folks. I knocked on doors there. And who and what groups supported your race for the house . We had a lot of diverse support. We had support from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in washington. We had womens groups, emilys list, naacp, we had environmental groups. Sierra club, league of conservation voters. And then we had people who believed on sending someone to washington who is going to fight for them. And thats what we do. We ran a campaign on my story of, you know, im the daughter of immigrants from mexico. I beat the odds. I got a piece of the american dream. And now im running to make sure you have that same shot. And it started with that personal story. And then we went into some of the issues and the differences between my opponent and i. But really was a story of hope. And at a time when you had a very divisive president ial election, people wanted hope. And its something that wins, right . People want to know that they have opportunity for their kids. How will you put those words into action out here legislatively . Well, i think part of it is protecting immigrants and families and trying to keep them together. Because theyve lost hope. And thats what were hearing right now. Whats going to happen . Were going to stand up and fight for those families and try to find efforts, even on a bipartisan level, to protect those families. I think there is also for my district, its one of the most heavily polluted districts in the country. And we talk about it as a Public Health crisis. That is a cycle of poverty that impacts a lot of different things. I will give you an example. The children in my district, too sick to go to school. Because of air pollution. The asthma rates are high and that impacts their ability to be in school and then you only have 10 graduating. So it really is a cycle of addressing not just the environment which is a Public Health issue, but education, it impacts education, making sure we try to invest in Early Childhood education i think is key, and trying to find ways here in washington to find some common ground, build some coalitions. So i think theres so many areas, you know, trying to invest in youth groups and the port of l. A. Being there which is a huge economic engine in the district that creates opportunities for families. Is that where most of the jobs are in the district . There is a huge amount, absolutely. Down at the port. So if theres a lot of talk about transportation and infrastructure funding and if we can get money to come to the district for bridges, for ports, for roads, thats all creating opportunity. But for me it starts with education and certainly