“Politics shouldn’t be in high schools”, “students don’t know enough to know what they’re talking about” If you’re politically aware, you’ve probably heard it before.

These statements are becoming increasingly popular among adults towards young people, often as a response to the recent No Kings protests that have been occurring across the country.

People who say that students shouldn’t be involved in politics face a dire question: If students shouldn’t be getting involved in politics, when should they? Until they’re adults? Until they’re out of the house and thrust into the raging sea of the world’s problems?

This is what people need to realize. Young people, students especially, are treated as if they don’t know what is happening in the world around them.

In 2024, only 47% of young people cast a vote in an election. Most of which stated that they couldn’t support themselves financially or didn’t feel like their vote didn’t matter. This attitude is enforced and created by their older peers.

With as many times as we’ve reported it, you probably know about the ICE protest that happened at the beginning of this year. The response from parents and adults can be described in one word: Sour.

A favorite slogan for parents often revolved around: “They just want to get out of class.”

I was at the protest to report, alongside a hundred other students, all chanting for ICE to stop. They weren’t here to get out of class, but to express their birth-given right to petition the government.

This serves as the perfect example of political awareness among young people. Students will become adults who become voters. They need to know what is happening in the world, both foreign and domestic, to make informed decisions about who and what they’re voting for

To the students who are reading this: Your voice matters. The voice of every human being on this planet matters. Know what kind of world you are going to live in, and the kind of world you want to live in. Everyone’s vote matters because it can change the world, so know what you want to change.

To the adults who are reading this: Your students’ voices matter. They matter because every year, hundreds of people at this school graduate to become members of society alongside you. They’ll have a better understanding of the problems of this world with your help. So don’t silence those who want to speak out about what they believe in.

Above all else, your vote matters.

It matters because this is the world we’re going to inherit. We have to know the modern issues if we are to be the ones who fix it. The midterm elections will happen this November, and I hope to see young people at the polls casting their vote.