The Crucial Role of Students in Democracy
Why our voices matter
By John Lin
The Progressive Teen Staff Writer
On FEBRUARY 14, 2018, NIKOLAS CRUZ BRUTALLY SHOT AND KILLED 17 STUDENTS AND STAFF MEMBERS AT MARJORY STONEMAN DOUGLAS HIGH SCHOOL, sparking organized protests and walkouts across the nation. Up to 2 million people showed up to the March For Our Lives at over 800 locations. When adults fail to work together and produce tangible solutions, teenagers must stand up. Student protests continue to be the most effective way to push for much-needed progress by raising awareness, activating youth, and establishing organizations.
Activism is an effective way for most youth to show their opinions. They are functionally shut out of direct participation in democratic institutions by the government. For teenagers below the age of 18, voting is illegal; civil disobedience entails violating the law; walk-outs are generally punished by school administrators. Students also have no presence or advocates in the public sphere and are ridiculed when they speak up. Parkland student David Hogg was mocked by Laura Ingraham and threatened with sexual assault by TV host Jamie Allman. Protests uniquely allow students to address problems because the resulting media coverage amplifies their voices, informs the public, and convinces politicians to act. Thanks in part to gun control protests, Florida governor Rick Scott, who received an A-plus rating from the National Rifle Association, signed new major gun regulations. Houston March For Our Lives Executive Leader Steven Garza explains that “protesting [is one] of the… most effective forms of communicating… Marches in the 60s and 70s ultimately led to the success of the Civil Rights [and] Anti-War movements.” Back when people of color and college students could not vote, their protests still helped pass the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, and the 26th Amendment.
Likewise, for today’s teenagers, protesting is the sole solution to societal problems. Adults often ignore issues that students face, allowing them to fester and worsen. Now, more than a third of American students report that they have used illicit drugs in their lifetimes. Almost 200,000 children have experienced a school shooting since 1999. Nearly twenty percent of high school students consider suicide annually. If students do not speak up now, the next generation of youth may be lost to drugs, guns, and suicide. Texas Democratic Party Treasurer and Pearland Independent School District Trustee Mike Floyd, a college freshman and one of America’s youngest elected officials, suggested in an interview with the Texas Tribune that “the older generation has dropped the ball… Hopefully young people will take [the] initiative.”
“Likewise, for today’s teenagers, protesting is the sole solution to societal problems. Adults often ignore issues that students face, allowing them to fester and worsen.”
Protests encourage students to participate in the political process more. Millennials are often called the “me generation” because of their supposed narcissism, with only half voting in 2016. With this in mind, now is the critical time to spur civic engagement among Generation Z. Demonstrations give youth a stake in democracy, motivating them to join action groups through peer pressure and improved awareness. Protests help engage teenagers in activism, giving the next generation a role in determining the next leaders. With higher voter turnouts, legislators better represent the population and pass fairer policies, ensuring that the government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Demonstrations also bring student leaders together, providing a backbone for future activist organizations. For example, as an organizer for the March For Our Lives protest in Houston, I helped to handle over 15,000 young Houstonians, together with six different committees, more than 100 student leaders, and 80 adult volunteers. We organized buses from Houston’s sprawling suburbs and communicated directly with over ten thousand people through social media. Though the March may have ended, its organizational framework has not disappeared. Students Demand Action is its national successor for gun control advocacy, and March leaders have created Students Rise to address broader student concerns. These organizations will represent youth in Washington and help spur voter registration, turning protests into policy. All around the country, democracy is flourishing because nearly 2 million young activists decided to attend the March For Our Lives, generating a productive national dialogue about school safety that continued with the Town Halls For Our Lives.
“Demonstrations also bring student leaders together, providing a backbone for future activist organizations.”
Last year, demonstrators at town halls and protests across the nation chanted, “Show me what democracy looks like.” This is what democracy looks like. Democracy is messy, with different opinions spurring disagreements, but we deliberate until we agree on the optimal solution. Our Founding Fathers intended for Americans to exercise their freedoms on the grounds of the land of the free and home of the brave. Students should continue to stand up for their beliefs and protest for their futures.
