Ensure student voters have a voice
As the presidential candidates weave their way around America, we watch as they curry favor from active and retired military, law enforcement, unions, Latinos, African Americans, environmentalists, white suburban women, the LGBT community and many other constituencies.
What you don’t hear that often, though, is talk about the importance of marshaling the student vote, specifically courting college-aged students. Bernie Sanders understood that before he was sidelined by the primaries. And even though his messages weren’t strong enough to resonate with the general population, he was well respected and noisily supported by many young Americans.
Overlooking student voters will prove costly in the upcoming election if we all show up to vote. Based on history, that’s a big “if,” but the bloc of student voters is growing daily, here on my campus and across the country. People may be quick to dismiss students as too busy partying, distracted, engaged in dangerous behaviors or otherwise preoccupied, but I can tell you, based on personal experience, that many of my peers are watching and listening, are paying attention to news and social media, and have strong opinions on the candidates, political parties and the issues.
Following the Parkland shootings, when Florida’s legislators and the federal government turned a blind eye to gun violence, students led protests around the country. Youth gathered by the millions, across the world, to talk about environmental concerns and global warming. And in the recent Black Lives Matter protests, young people were on the front lines staging and supporting peaceful protests in cities across the United States.
Social injustice matters to me and to other students. With the internet and social media, we have unparalleled access to a wide variety of information sources and share data, stories and opinions regularly across several popular platforms. That, in part, is why I know how devastated many of us were following the recent presidential debate and the behavior that made it difficult for viewers to come away with thoughtfully presented information on where the candidates stand on the issues.
Social equality, climate change, the virus response and the upcoming Supreme Court hearings are being closely watched by my peers and me. We care about this country and have a stake in the outcomes of this election and in judicial nominations of such great magnitude.
But to those young people who are not paying attention, who may not yet have voted in a national race and those who have not even registered for the 2020 election, I have this important message: Don’t wait, start now and be the change — get registered and vote. Pay attention to the candidates in your home states and on the federal stage, because the decisions these people will make in the near future are likely to profoundly influence our lives, for the better, hopefully … it’s up to you to take a stand on the way you want it to be.
As a leader in an independent but school-sanctioned club called PioneerVote, I’m proud to say this is our second year focused on reaching new and returning students with detailed information about voter-registration requirements. We want to help eliminate confusion or doubt and ensure students are properly registered to vote by absentee, mail-in ballots or in person, depending on their formal residency. In the past, we have worked with incoming classes, run registration clinics and attended special events. Now with COVID-19 limitations, we are seeking alternatives such as teaming up with SHU’s student athletics committees to register athletes, distributing registration cards and encouraging involvement through online media.
The impact of local, state and national politics these past four years has made a lasting impression. Good and bad decisions have been made and enforced. Increased awareness is showing us how important it is to be informed about processes and about issues. There is so much on the line in this election that will reverberate throughout our lifetimes.
There is no excuse for a student to not be registered or not to vote. If we don’t like government policies or things happening in our state, our country or the world today, we have a voice in deciding who gets to make those decisions going forward. Our lives and our futures are on the line. We get it.