High school and college students across the country are walking out of class on Election Day at 10 a.m. local time. Once again, the youth are proving the critics wrong and demonstrating they know how to organize.
The Future Coalition, a community and network of over 25 youth-led organizations, launched Walkout to Vote, a project that calls on students of all ages to head to the polls and cast their votes. Even those who are too young to vote can march alongside their classmates. Katie Eder, one of the founding members of the Future Coalition, says the walkout has two main goals: to bring a record number of young people to the polls and to let politicians know that young people are unified in their demand for change.
All students are encouraged to participate because the walkout aims to “change the culture around voting, to make voting something fun and exciting and something that brings communities together,” says Eder, who is old enough to vote. She remembers firsthand how frustrating it is to be on the “sidelines” and hopes the walkout empowers those who are watching, as well as those who are voting.
Eder says The Future Coalition was formed so youth-led organizations could have a space to connect, collaborate, and make the biggest impact possible. The organizations collectively tackle a variety of issues, including gun violence, climate change, education reform, racial justice, and prison reform. What unites them all is a fight for equality in the U.S.
“I think young people in general come to the table with really unique perspectives and really innovative ideas on what change can look like and what the country can look like moving forward,” Eder says. “Despite the fact that we have different passions for specific issues or we’re fighting for specifically different things, we all want a future that is safe and just for everyone.”
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Although some adults and critics may say common-sense gun control legislation is impossible or that we’ll never see the end of climate change, Eder and other youth organizers are adamant.
“We’re saying we believe it is possible, and we believe that if we come together … and move past our differences to work toward a common cause, that we can see a future that is safe and just for everyone in this country,” says Eder.
She also says that young people have realized adults aren’t necessarily looking out for the future. Young people are taking matters into their own hands by voting on issues and candidates that will directly affect the youth of today and future generations.
Today’s young people are especially vocal about politics. Now they just need to bring their voices to the ballot box.
UPDATE: Nov. 7, 2018, 4:19 p.m. EST Correction: Photographs from earlier this year were mistakenly used to depict Walkout to Vote on Nov. 6.
