Politics is a topic that I’ve worked hard to understand election after election. I’m sure there are several students my age who share this challenge, wondering where they fit into the big picture. In a country as large as the United States, there are many citizens around the country who speculate as to whether or not their vote actually counts.
For me, it’s more than whether or not your vote counts; it’s the pride and appreciation of being able to openly express how you feel about important issues. If you think about it, as an American, your rights are all you have protecting you. However, when it comes to America, it seems that citizens often take the right of free speech for granted. Consider China: their citizens aren’t even allowed to use Facebook. Imagine living in a country with that level of constraint on your ability to speak your mind.
This system of election in use today is what our country was built on years ago. For young women like us, voting is especially important. It’s essential to remember the struggles that women leading up to the 1920s had to endure in order to obtain equal rights. Why throw away what they worked so hard for?
I am voting this election season because I have that right. If you aren’t voting, what separates you from those who don’t care what happens to our country, or from those in other countries who don’t have the right to vote? We, as young people, need to appreciate what those who came before our time built us. Exercise your right this election season—you won’t regret it.
Photo Source: http://www.bigislandchronicle.com/2012/07/22/letters-dont-miss-your-chan…