2020 has certainly been a year for the books. We’re going into our seventh month battling a pandemic, people have lost jobs due to the virus, many inspirational people— including Representative John Lewis and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg— have passed away, we’ve had uprisings against blatant institutional racism, and not to mention, we are still fighting the effects of climate change. All of this is happening during an election year. Yes, I know. Some of these things seemed as if they happened lifetimes ago. But they’re happening right now, in real time. And it’s our job to change it.
The importance of voting has come to the frontlines this year after everything we have been through these past few years. The current state of our country is like nothing many of us have ever seen. The American people are polarized on issues like abortion, immigration and the Black Lives Matter movement. It’s become a common narrative that voting will help everything. While I believe voting will help some, that is not where our problems will suddenly end. Whether Donald Trump gets reelected or Joe Biden beats the incumbent, those administrations cannot single handedly fix our problems.
Advocacy is one of the other ways we can demand real change. The importance of advocacy is that we can use our voice to bring awareness and change to specific things. We may support some politicians over the other, but not necessarily agree with them on everything. If there’s a policy you want to stop, you can call your representatives, state and federal, and let them know why you don’t agree with certain legislation. If there is a problem that you want to fix, you can let your representatives know that you would like to see a change in a certain aspect of your community. You can also sign numerous governmental petitions or start your own. I’m not talking about Change.org petitions. If a petition gets enough signatures within a certain time frame, voters will be able to vote in favor or against the proposed measure the petition states. These are a few ways to get involved in advocacy.
However, a very common form of advocacy is subject to a lot of controversy: Protests. Usually, there is a mass gathering of people who organize to voice an objection to a certain concept or policy or event. They carry signs, have speakers and even march to bring awareness. Protests have often been criticized because they may turn violent and people do not agree with what they are about. But in my opinion, nothing big has happened without a protest. In the 1900s, white women started protesting to get the right to vote. In the 1950s and 60s, black people protested for economic and political equality. Even the founding of this country is based on a protest of taxation without representation. Protests are important for our democracy because they are a direct way we can express our beliefs and opinions.
No matter who wins the election this year, this is just the beginning. We are going to still have to bring awareness to certain issues and speak up for what we believe is right. It’s important to vote, but it’s also just as important to keep the momentum after. Our problems will not end and we will still have systemic problems to fight. I encourage you to start researching the issues that are important to you and organize ways to bring awareness and legislation. Even after November 3 ends, this is just the beginning.