Isabel Kalb, Contributing Photographer

Maxwell Frost assumed office as the Congressional Representative for Florida’s 10th district on Jan. 3. At 25 years old, he is the first member of Generation Z elected to Congress.

Frost spoke to a group of Yale students via Zoom about his life and work at 6 p.m. on Oct. 24. Around 100 students gathered in a classroom in Linsly-Chittenden Hall to listen to Frost’s talk.

Event organizers expressed their hope that Frost’s age and background as an activist would not only draw students to the event, but would also help inspire them toward political involvement. 

“Representative Frost is one of the foremost voices in the House today for young, progressive people,” Yale Democrats President Josh Guo ’24 told the News. “As the first — and so far, only — Gen-Z member of Congress, he also serves as a role model for many students in the Yale community who want to pursue a career in public service.”

Frost’s talk covered a wide range of topics, including his background as a gun control activist and advocate with the ACLU and, subsequently, as the National Organizing Director of the March for Our Lives. 

Students Demand Action Co-Federal Action Chair, Cole Mersereau ’24, reflected on Frost as an inspirational figure to young people in the gun control movement. 

“Representative Frost mentioned the impact that Sandy Hook in particular had on him, sparking his passion for gun reform,” Mersereau said. “As a lifelong resident of Connecticut, as a student, and most fundamentally as a human being, I related to what he was saying and his story. Getting to hear about the work he’s done and see what he’s actually been able to accomplish, as someone only a few years older than me, was both empowering and inspiring.” 

He added that while virtual talks tend to have fewer attendees, Frost’s Zoom visit garnered more than any virtual event he’d seen, with over 100 RSVPs — an anomaly Mersereau attributed to the excitement of Yale students to engage with someone from their own generation.

David Acquaah-Mensah ’25, speakers director for Yale Democrats and the individual responsible for inviting Frost, explained that one of his main goals in organizing the event was to inspire Yale students to see the power of activism and the potential of Generation Z to work for change. 

“I genuinely believe he’s a glimpse into what Gen Z leadership will look like in years to come,” Acquaah-Mensah said. “I hope someone watching felt a little more inspired to step up to the plate one day.”

Sasha Hussain, a postgraduate associate at Yale Medical School, said she came to the event in large part because of how powerful she found Frost’s background as an activist who made it to federal elected office at such a young age. 

As an undergraduate, Hussain served as the president of USC’s “Trojan Democrats,” a role that informed and bolstered her passion for college student political organizing. 

“What Representative Frost did before he got elected to Congress, organizing the March for Our Lives and working as an advocate, is something I resonate a lot with,” said Hussain. “Seeing someone who participated in these grassroots campaigns make it to such a high position at such a young age is such an inspiration.”  

Hussain waited along with seven others in line to ask Frost a question during the event’s Q&A portion. Despite a tight schedule, Frost stayed overtime on the Zoom in a stated effort to answer each person’s question. Topics ranged from state-level gun regulation in Florida, to fundraising in politics and congressional term limits, to the current violence in Israel and Gaza, to the current struggle to elect a Speaker of the House. 

Hussain and Mersereau both said they were impressed by his thoughtful responses and his willingness to engage in dialogue with Yale students. 

“As someone who is a young person who probably wants to run in the future, it’s amazing to see people who are so close in age to me, in elected office, speaking about issues that young people care about,” Hussain said.

Frost’s talk was the first Yale College Democrats speaker event of the academic year.