“You’re young, you don’t have to worry,” my grandma said during our Sunday night family dinner.
It was three days after the 2020 presidential election. I was discussing Joe Biden’s election with my family, the conversation quickly switching from light-hearted small talk to a lecture on why I shouldn’t care about politics at my age.
“Why do you worry so much? Stop acting like you know everything, your opinion doesn’t really matter.” — I was expressing my opinion on why a new president wasn’t such a bad thing. My family, though, disagreed.
I quickly shut up, picking at my spaghetti with my fork and suppressing my opinions for the rest of the discussion.
Those words needled their way into my thoughts, keeping me awake for several nights. In hindsight, I should’ve advocated for my right to believe in something more important and bigger than myself — something I deserved a say in, even though I was only 14.
Recently, there has been a lot of stigma around teens learning about politics. Scrolling on my phone, I see countless videos of adults bashing teenagers for speaking up. No one should be hated for having an opinion — no matter how much you disagree.
Too often, when I ask friends what they think about education issues or poverty, they respond saying “I don’t care about politics” or “it doesn’t matter to me.” Many teens think it’s weird to be so invested in the country’s future. Little do they know, the decisions that are made now have a huge impact on how the country functions and how the current generation will leave it for us.
Although many young adults and teenagers believe their parents’ opinions instead of forming their own, politics stretch farther than dinner table discussion — your family isn’t the only one living here with opinions. Teens shouldn’t be discouraged from voicing their political opinions, especially on issues like climate related risks and financial inclusion that directly affect us.
Since I was eight, my curiosity for politics has led me to watch press conferences and news reports on my living room TV while eating lunch or playing with my stuffed animals. I wish I could say that my family sparked this interest, but politics wasn’t a prioritized dinner conversation. Actually, my family looked down on anything related to the government or Barack Obama — who I idolized at the time.
Despite their sentiments that I was too young for such topics, I wanted to know what was happening in my country. I Googled each presidential candidate, learning the pros and cons of their promised policies.
Even though I didn’t fully understand prevalent issues like stimulus checks and Obamacare, I did my best to educate myself. There was never anyone who knew, or cared enough, to talk to me about these things — they thought I should be playing with Barbies instead. Despite my age, I still believed it was somewhat important for me to have just a small clue. With this new-found education, I stood in dissent for issues I had recently found to exist. Although this was discouraging, I believe that I truly benefited from this defeat. I learned how important the candidates we elect are and how they can truly impact everyone.
At 16 years old, my passion for politics has only grown. I know that one day, topics like climate change and healthcare will affect me, so I should have a voice in them too. Every teen should.
Voting and advocating for change — whether it’s in your community or the country — is key to the transition into adulthood. High schoolers are at most five years from being able to vote, and some already can. Learning about politics early on gives teens a grasp of relevant issues that makes them more educated voters.
Gen Z has been labeled as the most accepting and progressive generation in history, according to pewresearch.org. As the ones who have to deal with the issues left behind by older generations, we hold the country’s future in our hands.
Voting and advocating change are important because it gives citizens a chance to choose their government leaders, an opportunity to voice opinions on past performance of officials and express opinions on public issues.
It’s important to vote and be a part of creating change and fixing problems in America, ones that older politicians refuse to. Electing politicians to represent our generation can only happen if more of the youth vote — meaning more teens need to be politically literate by the time they turn 18. This can only happen if we include teens in political discussions, whether it be at the dinner table or during a car ride.
The number of 18-24 year olds who reported voting in presidential elections decreased from 50% to 39% from 1972 to 2020, according to childtrends.org. This is a problem — one we need to work towards fixing now. Schools and parents should set a standard by emphasizing the importance of educating oneself about politics.
You don’t need to scour dozens of textbooks and articles, and definitely don’t need to become the next senator, governor or president if you don’t want to. You should, however, educate yourself to have a general view of politics. It’s OK to have a political opinion as a teenager — you have a voice, too.
In fact, in today’s society, it has become even easier to become educated than nearly a decade ago. Teenagers are the future of this country, and soon, most of us will be able to vote — it’s our job to shape America into the country we want it to be, and to fix the injustices occurring now for the future generations. There’s so much change to be made, and the statement “I don’t care about politics” isn’t acceptable in the 21st century.
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