We the (Young) People: The importance of effective youth activism

Editor’s Note: The second paragraph was edited to correctly reflect the Civil Rights sit-ins as a reference.

Ugh, the kids these days.

Every generation has different views than the ones before – whether that’s flapper dresses, rock n roll, or social media – that older generations judge them for. But in times of political turmoil, those differences and the similarities become all the more critical.

As seen in events from the Civil Rights sit-ins to last month’s walkout, young people often find themselves in a position where they can or have to take a stand– the biggest factor is making sure that their point gets across.

Why youth activism is so important

Obviously, it’s important for people to voice opinions, but what a lot of people don’t talk about is why it’s especially important for younger people.

“[Adults] can actually show up to the polls and vote, youth showing up for the hope of a better world, but still kind of on the outside,” OH AP US History teacher Aaron Henricks said.

When a group of people can’t vote, it becomes that much more important that they have their message heard and considered in other ways.

“All these politicians need to know, like, the range of people [who are affected],” OH sophomore Adam Omar said.

While youth may not be able to directly support a cause, by advocating and showing their opinions, they can show adults in their communities their point of view, and even influence elected officials’ decisions.

In a lot of cases, youth activists are critical to overall movements affecting both young people. Take, for example, the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and ‘60s.

“Adults had to be very careful about what they did in terms of civil rights, because many of the African-American adults in those communities were dependent on others for their jobs… where there could be penalties… for getting involved, [but] the youth didn’t necessarily have all of those strings hanging over them,” Henricks said.

In situations where adults, even people in only specific demographics or job sectors, can be punished or threatened for their involvement in a cause, they may not be able to advocate for themselves, and that responsibility falls to teenagers and young adults.

Youth activism in American history

In the US, at least, youth activism the way we understand it today, didn’t start until the 1900s, when public schools were becoming a lot more common and significant to people’s lives. The homefront efforts of both World Wars also added to a sense of responsibility, even to people who couldn’t vote yet. This all culminated in one of the most significant youth-led political movements in the US: The Civil Rights movement of the ‘50s and ‘60s.

As mentioned before, young people were responsible for a lot of the most significant sub-areas of the movement. Not only were they critical to desegregating schools, which policies later spread to other things, but they took significant parts in every aspect of the movement, from sit-ins to registering voters to marching.

“Early on [youth activists were using]… Dr. [Martin Luther] King or Gandhian non-violence, where… you train people to take whatever the other side is doing – so you see things like the sit-ins starting in Greensboro, North Carolina, and spreading out,” Henricks said.

By simply taking up seats in a restaurant and being willing to be arrested or, in some cases, physically harmed without retaliating, young people were able to bring national attention to their cause and eventually get the issues resolved.

“As the 1960s went on a little bit, … many [activists] stayed committed to the King kind of non-violent school, but you did see… the Black Power movements, some other youth shifting more towards ‘the… pace of this is slow,’” Henricks said.

While there were some who actively supported violence, many continued to focus on Civil Disobedience, only supporting violence when necessary or in defense.

A lot of later protests and activism are inspired to some degree by the Civil Rights era, and for good reason; it was a widespread movement gathering support from many demographics (including age groups), with major success.

One such movement was the Anti-Vietnam War movement in the 1970s, organized and demonstrated largely at college campuses by the students, as a lot of the efforts were concentrated on being against the draft.

“You saw students doing a lot of non-violent… teach-ins, where they would take over college lecture halls, [or] occupy other college office buildings in defense of … free speech … because back before the 1960s, colleges openly said that there were restricted… freedom of speech among students,” Henricks said.

“There are questions over… what directly led to the violence of the national government at Kent State and some of the other things,” he added, “but… largely [protesters] engaged in non-violence.”

What to do about it

One of the most important factors as to whether a movement is successful is the organization and methods used.

“You need to be organized,… have a clear message,… connect yourself to the government,… have that unity in numbers, and …have that effective communication,” OH AP Gov and Civics teacher Brenda Shay said.

Organization comes from how a group plans events, but also what strategies they’re using and at what scale. While many people think that political action means big protests, walkouts, or strikes, but there are many more ways to be active.

“You can write letters to representatives that represent you in Congress or at the state level. … You can write to newspapers. You can call in to radio shows. You can educate your peers around you. You can make sure that you’re educated on the issues so that your voice becomes credible,” Shay said.

Protesting is, in a lot of cases, a great way to demonstrate strength in numbers in a way to get a point across to the general public, but sometimes reaching out to politicians directly is just as beneficial. Especially for young people who may not have transportation to larger demonstrations, calling or emailing can be a great way to participate. Another thing to consider is which politicians or groups the activism is trying to reach.

“More people need to…schedule meetings and … start talking with their local politicians. … More people from Oswego need to start emailing Lauren Underwood and need to ask their local politicians to do something,” Omar said.

While talking to local politicians is a great start, for statewide, national, or international issues, one village or congressional district can’t fix the entire problem.

“If you want to make it change, it has to start local, but you have to push it out past those boundaries,” said OH sophomore Kimberly Vazquez. “It’s more than just your community. It’s more than just your little town.”

While social media and the internet are problematic, as polarization and misinformation rampant, when used carefully and wisely, they can be valuable tools for activism.

“The ability of the internet, I think, has changed the nature of youth activism, because prior to the internet, and then even more than that, social media… it had to be such a directed movement [that] took so much more logistical effort. Nowadays, youth activism can be mobilized much more efficiently through online communications,” Henricks said.

It’s important to fact-check, find balanced perspectives, listen to nonpartisan sources, and be respectful of other people’s opinions.

“[A movement] can’t be emotional; it has to be factual. … You have to stay on message. … You can’t hurt other people in the process, or interfere with other people’s rights in the process,” Shay said.

“When someone feels understood and validated, they’re much more willing to validate and understand your side,” Shay added. “If you can’t have that civil discussion with people, you’re never going to get anywhere, because the extremes don’t work.”

One of the most important things for a movement is keeping it going.

Hendricks noted this importance when seeking to make an impact. “It feels helpful to look back at the past, at other moments that felt … tumultuous or chaotic, and placing ourselves in that mindset that… history doesn’t repeat, but it does often rhyme,” he said. “Understanding [that] we’ve made it through some of those things in the past, … can give a little bit of a calming.”

Looking at which historical methods were successful, and that they were successful, serves as an important reminder that, while it may be slow, and there may be losses in the meantime, youth activism does work.

As Shay shared, youth activism is crucial, not just for today, but for the future of the country.

“Every generation has its topics of activism [and] every generation has a responsibility to continue to try to make our nation that more perfect union that we’re absolutely striving for,” she said.

“You’re going to be voters, you’re going to be making decisions, you’re going to be running this country someday,” Shay said. “What kind of a country do you want?”