"A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user." -- Theodore Roosevelt
I had been thinking about writing a post on the youth vote for the past few weeks, as I finally got around to it I came across an interesting, for lack of a better word, post You Only Care about One Thing??!!! It was riddled with contradictions (it kind of reminded me of someone...) and I found it quite embarrassing as a political science major, as a college student, and as an informed voter.
I think that it is unrealistic to agree with every part of a candidates campaign, BUT it is extremely unrealistic to vote for a candidate because of one issue and one issue alone!! I do not understand why you would vote at all, not informing yourself of the OTHER issues a particular candidate stands for is one of the most ridiculous things in my opinion. This post reminded me why the youth gets such flack for their participation, or lack thereof, in politics.
It is no surprise the youth turnout is significantly low, in comparison to voters over the age of 25:
(civicyouth.org)
I think the more important question is why the youth does and does not vote? The 2008 election brought out the highest number of youth voters since Vietnam, some credit this to Obama’s “idealized” campaign, while others credit the dissatisfaction with the Bush administration, Obama’s grassroots organization and the fact that Obama paid so much attention to the youth.
So what is it that makes the youth disconnect from politics altogether?
Some credit this disengagement to age -- “The most likely answer is that young adults do not vote because many are still -- in a sense -- children, without adult commitments or responsibilities.” Other arguments center around education, Peter Levine argues that education and social media are incorrectly defining what is important; “The frenetic 24-hour news cycle means that young people hear more about Sarah Palin’s latest Facebook message than substantive issues like health care, unemployment, the War in Afghanistan, and potential school budget cuts.”
Young voters are not being taught how to be responsible citizens, there has been a lack of attention on civic engagement especially when you begin to look at race or class. Levine offers a solution, by having schools, mainly high schools, recognize the importance of civic engagement they can encourage students to engage in politics by reading, writing and communicating important issues. Confidence plays a role in voting, the more confident you feel, in terms of your awareness and understanding of the important issues at stake, the more likely you are to vote.
Organizations like Rock the Vote and Generation Citizen are attempting to educate the youth on the importance of their vote, showcasing which issues directly affect the youth, and what each candidate brings to the table.
It is an important election for the youth, 18 to 24 year olds are faced with a 15.7% unemployment rate, even for those lucky enough to have a job or job offers, taking a stand (or caring) for others is commendable.
I think you're right. I think it is crazy to vote on only one issue, but to go along with your argument, at least I am voting. At least I care about one thing. That's a start. And that's a lot more than a good portion of America's young voters can say.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you have to say about the youth vote. Increased awareness in schools is actually a great solution. As a youth voter, I have felt overwhelmed at the prospect of the upcoming election. Every time I go on the internet, I am bombarded by pages and pages of news regarding the candidates. Its simply too hard to read everything so having a more streamlined program in schools to educate students about each ISSUE and PARTY (not necessarily each candidate, since the curriculum would have to be able to be viable for years to come, it would help people to be more informed. Ultimately, a program like this would increase voter turnout because it would expose students early on, before they could even vote, to a great background of political involvement. I hope that schools start implementing programs like this so youth can be more informed and develop their opinions.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with the importance of encouraging youth to vote. Your last paragraph sums it up nicely. Youth are the most important voters in this election because we are the future of America and we are the group that will be most affected by the course America takes. I think in part schools should take on some of the responsibility of educating youth about the issues and politics in general. As a result of the lack of political education, most people's sole influence growing up comes from their parents. Many people don't know why they vote for a particular party, but they do it because their parents do. While there is nothing wrong with being influenced by your parents I think youth would benefit from unbiased education in schools where both sides of the issues are taught and students are allowed to debate them amongst their peers. I think this would foster interest in the issues and a renewed desire to vote and participate in America's political system.
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