Gen Z. The generation of activists like Greta Thunberg, Tiana Day, and the Parkland survivors. The generation that wrote, composed, and designed an entire musical on TikTok.

Members of Gen Z have accomplished a lot and yet teens and politics are not typically words you see in the same sentence. Now why is that? Some might say it’s because teens aren’t motivated to participate in politics. Others might voice that teens just aren’t included as a target demographic for civic campaigns. The real answer isn't so simple and is often overlooked when assessing teen engagement.

So, why don’t we participate in the first place?

Well, youth, especially youth like myself who are not of age, are often pushed out of political and civic conversations under the premise of being too young. A 2020 study from CIRCLE (Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement), indicates that only half of young people in the U.S. have received instruction on how to register to vote. In my personal experience, through my public education, I can say that not only have I not received the resources necessary to learn about how to vote and why it’s important, but my peers and I have then been admonished for not turning out. 

Since teens traditionally don’t turn out in substantial numbers, it makes fiscal sense that political campaigns use their resources and funds to target demographics that they can count on to vote. Hence, youth find themselves in a Catch-22—faced with a perpetual cold shoulder in regards to the civic world and voicing our ideas becomes cumbersome. 

This may not be the only reason that youth do not turn out to vote, but when it feels like an entire system is structured against you, and you are meant to feel as though you don’t belong, it’s easy to lose interest in getting involved. Why speak up just to be ignored?

Of course, it’s not as if teens don't have ideas on what would benefit our society. In fact, teens tend to be more vocal about their thoughts and ideas when they are provided with spaces that feel safe or value their opinions. Creating an environment that not only promotes and elevates teen voices but also cultivates them is important to seeing real change in the way our world works, especially since a lot of policies end up defining the America that younger generations grow up in. The same survey by CIRCLE also found that youth who remembered getting voter instruction or encouragement in high school participated more in civic activities. 

I myself was able to get into civics in middle school. Back in 2018, there was a Participatory Budgeting cycle that my school was involved in. The idea that citizens, including students, could help choose how to spend a million dollars on bettering the community was novel in New York, and not many people knew about it. If we wanted our project to win a chunk of that money, we would have to teach people about the concept of Participatory Budgeting, and I was enlisted to get out the word. That included stopping people on the street, putting up informational flyers around the neighborhood, and handing out ballots to those I could. One of the coolest things about this Participatory Budgeting project was that anyone who was 14 and older and either lived, worked, went to school, or owned a business in the district could vote. This really introduced me to how voting worked as well as the idea of campaigning for a cause. 

How can we, the youth, get involved in politics? Research, research, research! I know, the word "research" feels daunting because we often equate that word to school, but I promise this is a lot less strenuous. Start small, think about your neighborhood.

Do you know who your local officials are? 

Who represents you? 

Now think about what’s important to you. 

Based on what you’ve seen of your local officials, are your values reflected in their policies? Campaigns?

Consider talking to someone, your family perhaps, about the different candidates and share your opinions before voting on the November 2. Even if you are too young to vote, starting these conversations now can definitely help create good habits for when it is your time to vote. As young people, the future is ours, and if we want anything in our society, we have to learn to be the change we want to see. 

Need resources on voting?

• Check out our partners from the NYC Campaign Finance Board: VoteNYC
• And check out NYPL's voting resources page: Voter Information: Get Informed & Vote