Rich's final piece: Election Warfare

This entry is an opinion piece about the perceptions of young people (mainly high school students) in the current election. I'd rather not give a description of the piece and let my writing do the talking. Enjoy!

Election Warfare: A Game the Young Never Win

Political strategists often analyze which presidential candidate is going to get the 18-24 age demographic for their votes, or which candidate is going to get the white vote, the black vote, the Hispanic vote, and so on. In this manner, every possible race, class, gender, identity, and age group is covered.

Or so they think.

In election time, all of the people who can vote are accounted for by each political base. Every candidate needs to get every vote they can get, and try to adhere to every voice in order to persuade those voters to their campaign.

When vying for votes, politics is a game, and sometimes the players are genuine, trying to help everyone they can.

However, the voices often forgotten are the people who are simply too young to vote.

I visited my old high school in Brooklyn, Edward R. Murrow, and I was stunned when I discovered that there were numerous students who were so aware about the political issues plaguing our country today. Enlightened discussions about how future candidates could affect their lives took place in the halls where the majority of people in that building could not even vote.

The election is so vibrant, that people who are not supposed to be concerned with these “adult matters,” are becoming more involved. In a political warfare game where candidates slander each other left and right, it is so satisfying to see something positive emerge from this election season.

I do not know what caused this awareness among a younger generation. The extended media coverage, the internet, the heated primary battle, Obama’s young age, and just the sheer importance of this election may have all played a part in this political change.

In this case however, the reasons for why this change might have happened do not matter. If these sediments among younger people are sustained over a long period of time, the next 18-24 age demographic will be more informed and better political citizens.

Of course, not every 16-year-old has become politically empowered (nor is every registered voter knowledgeable about political issues). But when I was walked through my high school, I noticed that there was a vibe. More students cared.

Yet, these voices are often ignored because they do not matter in determining who gets elected as the next president. College rallies matter because college students can vote.

High school students have voice as well, and though they cannot vote, and the majority of them are dependent on their parent’s income, this is their country as much as ours. Their concerns are real as everyone else’s.

Most public high school students need better teachers, new books and less crowded classrooms, just to name a few issues they face on a daily basis. Parents complain about these issues to their politicians but the voices would be more powerful if the students had a say as well.

I’m not calling for a drop in the voting age but I think it is important to remember that not every voice is heard. Thinking of the children is not going to cut it anymore. Politicians and the media need to start listening to the concerns of children from there mouths, not only through the filter of parents.

Yes, this may not get presidential candidates anymore votes in their political games, but if the United States government is “for the people,” then everyone has a right to get their voices out in the open regardless of how young they are.