Empathy In The Invisible War

Empathy is an important quality for a leader because it allows a leader to generate deeper trust among the people they represent. Furthermore, empathy helps the leader connect and fight on the behalf of the issues the people they represent. Gillibrand explains that providing a voice for her constituents is important because these people are not in positions of power. As senator, Gillibrand took efforts to make sure that the problems of her constituents became her problems. By providing forms of emotional releases, such as crying, I believe that she became closer to her constituent’s issues and was able to fight harder to get their bills passed or heard.
For instance, concerning the military policy, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Gillibrand had little knowledge of how bad military rapes were during her first 4 years as senator. However, it did not seem like she fought as hard about the issue until she requested that her staff accompany her in watching the movie, The Invisible War. By watching this movie she felt more connected to the people who were victims of military rape. In a meeting with the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding how to create more accountability in the military she physically and verbally showed how much she cared about the
Senator Mary Landrieu, who had advocated for families during Hurricane Katrina, had to inform Gillibrand that she needed to tell other senators why they needed to care about the 9/11 responders. Gillibrand portrayed that she deeply cared about the 9/11 responders when she held back her tears while giving a speech on the senate floor. Moreover, by telling the stories of the 9/11 responders she made some of the other senators empathetic, which led to the passing of the 9/11 Healthcare Bill. By showing empathy and a deep resolve to the issue she was able to compel others to follow her