Civic engagement shouldn’t cost this much

As I am finishing up my undergrad as a political science major at Stonehill College, I am taking a step back to think about those who are and are not involved in politics.

Now, when I say involved I mean those who make contributions to furthering their knowledge on issues and policy within our American political system. As a political science student, it was very easy to stay politically engaged, as it was my homework. But this was not the case for the collection of my peers.

It would always be frustrating to me when I would be with a group of my friends and would bring up something in the news that I thought was absolutely wild and they would not have any idea what was going on. And on top of that, they wouldn’t even care. It felt like I was talking baseball to someone who had never seen the sport.

Going to a predominantly white institution, it was unbelievable to see the amount of privilege someone could possess by not needing to know what was going on in the country. For many, their lives are at stake. They are not following politics because they have a passion for it, they are following politics because the decisions that are being made are ones that can severely impact the well-being of themselves and their families.

There were times where it felt like I was the only one who cared, and as someone who values social justice and inclusion, it caused me to keep my mouth shut and just let everyone live their lives.

My desire for staying engaged should not have cost me over $200,000. I am not saying that everyone needs to be a political science major, but systemically speaking, our education system is failing our children by not teaching empathy about issues that do not directly affect them.

I would reasonably say that 80 percent of students at my college do not go out of their way to follow current events. That’s a large number. That’s a number that speaks larger on the system than on the individual.

It is hard to be frustrated in the majority when they feel as if they do not need to care. It is easier to say that there are more ignorant people than understanding people, but why? I believe this is a product of higher education’s capitalistic emphasis on success.

As a society, if we want a less divisive political system, which is something everybody wants and nobody strives toward, we need to do a much better job at furthering the education of civic engagement through the college level. If my college emphasized being socially aware in the same degree they emphasized post-graduate employment, the world would be a different place.

Daniel Madsen graduated from Notre Dame-West Haven in 2015 and will graduate this year from Stonehill College with a major in political science.

Associated Press President Donald Trump pumps his fist to the crowd after speaking to a campaign rally in Montoursville, Pa.