Upon checking social media on the morning of Jan. 29, I was dismayed to find that some people refused to watch the State of the Union due to partisanship or sheer ignorance. As someone who identifies as a libertarian, I don’t agree with most of President Barack Obama’s policies. However, I still managed to sit myself down and watch him give his yearly State of the Union address on Jan. 28. I didn’t agree with much of what he said and, as my roommate can attest to, I even found myself yelling, “Shut the fuck up!” to our president after a particularly bold statement related to drone usage. Watching the State of the Union wasn’t fun for me. It made me angry and frustrated beyond belief. Regardless, I watched it because watching the State of the Union isn’t about me or my political beliefs — it’s about active civic duty.
Arguably the biggest way to exercise civic duty is by voting. Every major campaign season, college students see countless advertisements encouraging students to “do their civic duty” and register to vote. Seeing as the voter turnout for the 18 to 24 year-old demographic has historically been among the lowest of all age demographics — according to the United Census Bureau, 18 to 24-year-olds saw less than a 50 percent turnout in presidential elections from 1996 to 2008 — it makes sense that these campaigns target voting specifically. However, the act of casting a ballot on Election Day means significantly less if the individual is not at least minimally engaged with their civic duty the rest of the year. In other words, civic duty isn’t a one day kind of thing: It is something that needs to be actively exercised and the individuals themselves must be at least minimally informed to be meaningful activists.
You don’t have to be pursuing a degree in political science or be a Washington insider to get the necessary information to cast a meaningful vote. In fact, being politically informed doesn’t even have to be difficult. With the advent of social media, there has never been a time when we as a people have been more connected to our government than now. Figures ranging from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to local officials such as Mayor Paul Soglin are just a Twitter-search away, and last year Obama hosted a series of “Fireside Hangouts” via Google to answer questions directly from members of the public.
Furthermore, from discussion of student loan interest rates to debate over the availability of birth control, students have ample reason to care about what happens in the current political realm. The age-old adage holds true — if you don’t cast an informed vote, you forfeit the right to complain.
Civic duty also encompasses listening to people we may not agree with. It is not fun but it is necessary. We will never be truly informed of anything in politics if we are not able to listen to the opponent’s stance and actively question our own beliefs.
We live in one of the most democratic countries on this earth. It is in this form of government where we have the ability to make our voices heard and our opinions matter. However, what our form of government demands in return for this opportunity is that its citizens are at least minimally educated on the political matters of our time so that we can accurately represent ourselves. Through social media, we have never been more connected to government officials — allowing us to have the necessary information at our convenience. If you want your vote in the upcoming April elections — or any election for that matter — to be truly meaningful then you need to put in the minimally-invasive legwork well before you step into the voting booth and cast your ballot.
Madeline Sweitzer ([email protected]) is a freshman majoring in political science and intending to major in journalism.
