Whether you’ve been involved in the Black Lives Matter movement, standing with Mizzou, or picketing for Planned Parenthood, Collegiettes all over the United States are protesting—more than they have in decades.
A UCLA survey found that today’s students are way more interested in politics and civic engagement than they have been in 50 years. Among the 141,000 college freshman surveyed, almost 10 percent of students said that they expected to participate in protests—And that number grew among black students, “one of six of whom said they expect to demonstrate,” according to The Washington Post. Similarly, about 60 percent of students planned to vote while in college. This is nearly 6 percent higher than last year.
“The protests on college campuses as well as communities in Ferguson, Baltimore and elsewhere really resonated with freshmen,” said Kevin Eagan, the director of UCLA’s Cooperative Institutional Research Program, according to the Post.
College students are also a lot more liberal than they used to be. The majority “supported same-sex marriage, abortion rights, affirmative action, legalization of marijuana and equal pay for women,” according to The LA Times.
Student activism seems reviving at colleges around the U.S. With issues of civil rights, reproductive rights, immigration coming to a head with the 2016 election, protesting is more important now than ever for making our voices heard.