By Aislinn Keely
Declan Murphy, FCRH ’18, can’t run for president. He was born in Tokyo General Hospital rather than an American base, making him ineligible to be the United States commander-in-chief despite being born to American parents, but that doesn’t keep him from political action.
Murphy has had four internships in politically based areas, he will graduate with majors in political science and history in addition to a philosophy minor, has served on “four and a half” e-boards, is a member of six Fordham organizations and has been a part of 15 total shows at Fordham. For Murphy, community contribution and political action often blend together.
“I generally really like to help people. It’s one of the reasons why I love politics is it’s being able to help people on a grand scale,” said Murphy.
This knack for helping people has blossomed into many leadership roles for Murphy, including a position as the co-news editor for the paper, a position on Black Sheep Poetry and a previous e-board position on Mimes and Mummers. However, Murphy explained that outside of his major in political science, most of his path at Fordham was serendipitous. He called his history major “accidental” and credited much of his involvement to being in the right place at the right time, or a “weird set of circumstances,” coupled with his reliability as a person.
However, politics was always in the plan for Murphy, and it will continue to be central to him after he finishes his senior year. “Career-wise I want to stay in politics. But, one advantage of that is that I think it’s a diverse field,” he said. He said there are intersections in news and service.
With Murphy’s diverse list of extracurriculars, he thrives on these intersections. He explained how his affinity for acting honed skills that could be useful in political fields, like public speaking and engaging an audience. “I won’t necessarily be doing the same things when I leave here, but they’re all little pieces I think will help me in my career in politics.”
Murphy has already built his political resume through internships with a campaign financing firm in Harlem, a non-profit for YA Common Cause, a liberal think-tank and work on the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign. He noted the election as a “pretty devastating loss.”
“I’m sure so many people have said this but it was really disheartening as a student of politics and someone who who’s active to live through the elections last year,” said Murphy.
However, Murphy said that being able to continue working gives him a sense of hope. He is still a regular attendee of College Democrat meetings. “I talk a lot there, probably too much,” he said.
His position on the paper has also given him the opportunity to explore political thought and political satire further, as well as the journalistic side of politics. Before obtaining his editor position, Murphy wrote news articles for the paper. “It was a good way to make sure I was up to date on issues, and a lot of my writing was simply processing what was going on and making sure I was reading about it,” he said.
Even though his co-news editor position came from what he joked was a “series of promotions I didn’t ask for,” Murphy said he really enjoys the work he does.
“I love the news and I’m always reading news, but it’s great because the vibe of the paper is not as structured. So with all that’s going on it’s kind of having a semi-satirical look at the news, being able to look at the news and point out the inherent absurdity of things without being as bound by objectivity has been really valuable and therapeutic,” he said. Murphy also said he enjoys overseeing others’ articles as an editor and understand how they are processing current events.
When asked how he sleeps with all this on his plate, Murphy said, “rarely and fitfully,” but that, ultimately, he feels better when he is engaged and working with people. “It’s good to keep busy. For every part of my life I like to be busy,” he said.
Murphy said that he is grateful for his time at Fordham, and very glad he ended up at Rose Hill among his list of schools. “It’s one of those things you never know quite where you’re going to go. But I’m very happy that I did land here,” he said.
Murphy credited his diverse resume to the environment Fordham provides. “I’m extremely grateful that Fordham is the kind of place where I’ve been able to pursue all these passions at the same time, and also you know do all my coursework and be in a community that’s really supportive. Fordham is such an amazing community that I can wear my unstable stack of like six hats and not fall down or not topple over and have people that are supported at every turn,” said Murphy.
