“If there is no struggle there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom and yet deprecate agitation are men who want crops without plowing up the ground; they want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters…Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them, and these will continue till they are resisted with either words or blows, or with both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress.”
– Frederick Douglass, 1857
In an age of increasingly polarized politics, we’ve all heard people close to us preface arguments or defend a vow of silence with “I don’t do politics.” But truthfully, a reality where we can afford for that statement to be true doesn’t exist. The choice to ignore, subconsciously or not, political issues and current events based on the notion that they’re too stressful, divisive, or time consuming is widely accepted. I hope to examine and redefine why this normalization has to end, and reframe the negative connotation that surrounds the entity of politics.
Politics are unavoidable
Politics are woven into the fabric of our everyday lives. The drinkable water from our sinks is a result of legislation to regulate clean water access. The money that funds our public university to provide us with an education was allocated by a bureaucracy. Historical movements for civil rights and equality have gotten us to the point of civility we have in social interaction today. The fact that we can discuss, express, and argue whatever individualized passion we want in a multitude of circumstances is a result of our Constitution’s foundational values. However, the systems that allow these daily practices are imperfect and everchanging. There are millions of people that woke up today and couldn’t drink clean water, didn’t have access to education, or were being punished for attempting to exercise freedom of speech or expression. Anything relative to our society that you are able to see or experience in a day can be related back to some sort of political origin, making it truly impossible to ignore.
Why should you care?
What if you believe politics don’t impact your personal life enough for you to put time and effort into caring about them? I would argue that the amount we care about issues that don’t affect us says more about who we are than the amount we care about our own problems. The world is becoming more individualistic, with things being catered to hyper-personalized interests through increased consumerism, and powerful leaders holding more overall nationalistic views on world issues; the concept of empathy is being lost. I believe that empathy is a guiding moral principle for quite literally everything and keeps the world running. While politics do actively impact our routines on a personal level, it’s equally important to recognize how they impact the lives of those whose paths we’ll never cross: the societal level. From global conflicts that don’t seem to be impacted by our attention or awareness to protests for minorities we’ve never interacted with, the importance lies in the principle of believing we can make change. Political efficacy is more important to preserve in young people than ever before, and with an emphasis on teaching about the value of empathy, I believe this can happen naturally.
Additionally, I would make the argument that political apathy doesn’t equal political neutrality. The conscious choice to be disengaged from politics, no matter the intentions behind it, does not make an individual immune to its consequences. Looking away from issues doesn’t make them cease to exist. This isn’t to say that everyone has to be concerned about every global event at every given time, it’s more to unpack the thought process that lies beneath the “I don’t do politics” attitude. I can understand feeling like engaging with politics is an overly expansive burden. The consumption of news can feel tiring and repetitive, political discussions can cause a strain on our relationships, and many issues seem so distant and detached from our lives that we feel powerless and choose to render them irrelevant. But realistically, we are living in a world where politics and essential morals don’t exist in a vacuum. We can’t afford to bat an eye to the uncomfortable things, and these challenges are worth our attention, frankly, in dire need of our attention. We’re living in a time where ignorance is causing damage on an arguably wider scale than passion is.
the consequences of not engaging
Being passionate and exercising the freedoms we have access to is an essential element of our civic duty. If we, the young people who are affected by political decisions being made at the legislative level, don’t participate in them in the ways we can, how can we hope for progress or success in our futures? I understand that putting effort into small-scale political participation can feel unproductive in the short term. With the sheer amount of news and content we are faced with on a day-to-day basis, it seems easier to avoid the vast world of current issues altogether. But I would argue that that defeatist attitude is what will stunt us the most. It’s comparable to the bystander effect, where you think someone else will take care of what you don’t. If you believe that issues will remain static or even solve themselves without your impact, they will only regress. In the grand scheme of things, one more voice added to a protest or one more share of a story that boosts awareness goes a longer way than it seems. If we all stop believing in the value of our passions, the change we want to see in the world will never come to be. Political elites thrive on our prioritization of convenience and aversion of confrontation. A polarized political landscape keeps us stagnant and stuck, making their jobs easier. If those in power are making decisions for us on unwarranted scales, how will our interests ever be taken into consideration?
Participation and progress
Political engagement can take many different forms and is essential at every level. One doesn’t have to be insanely informed on every historical and present nuance of every issue to acknowledge it and care about it. Being aware of and morally opposing injustice is the first step. Taking a stance on things, whether strongly sided or neutral, based on trustworthy, credible information, will do more good than ignoring an issue altogether. Having conversations about current events and discussing opinions on important political decisions boosts awareness and normalizes civil interactions about society. Expressions of belief through protests, social media, or other public displays are about boosting political efficacy, and feeling like as an individual you can encourage others through your own actions.
To politically participate and take action that will directly influence the issues you care most about, seek opportunities in your local community. You can attend meetings, join groups, donate, volunteer on campaigns, or contact officials. Most importantly, exercising your right to vote for the representatives that have the opportunity to impact the issues that affect you and those around you is essential. Especially with the midterm elections having just passed, I encourage you to look into the senators, representatives, and other roles that were elected in your state and local communities. There is an unprecedented array of accessible resources available to help you in learning more about how to stay informed and get involved.
It’s ultimately impossible to care about everything. Politics and the pressures that accompany them can seem overwhelming, but now more than ever, it’s important to be passionate about the things that affect both what you personally rely on and what’s larger than just you. I challenge you not to wait for an incentive or for when things get “bad enough.” Political apathy is a privilege, and that privilege is a danger to everyone. Don’t be afraid to speak up or feel pressured to conform to problematic or harmful ideologies. Our generation is in control of our futures.