Montgomery, AL: Wear the “Protect Voting Rights” Button with Pride!

The city that stands out  from the Presidential Leadership Academy Spring Break trip is Montgomery, Alabama. Perhaps my bias comes from the spontaneous tour of an architecture firm near the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Civil Rights Memorial! The visit to JMR+H Architecture, PC was unexpected; however, what was even more unexpected was a subtle eye-opening experience at the Civil Rights Memorial.

I was a late bloomer in regards to attaining a driver’s license. I admit to have failed the test three times before finding success in a Philadelphian parking lot. That day, I registered to vote; since that day, I have voted not once. This fact of the matter was brought to the fore after two years of being in the back of my mind at the conclusion of the tour at the Civil Rights Memorial. I took the opportunity to grab a “Protect Voting Rights” button on my way out.

By definition, a souvenir is “a thing that is kept as a reminder of a person, place, or event”; hence, the “Protect Voting Rights” button should be a reminder of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Civil Rights Memorial. Perhaps it is for my fellow PLA students; however, it is a reminder of how I have yet to take advantage of my right to vote. According to USA Today writing correspondent Morgan Baskin, “In the 2014 mid-term Congressional and state elections, youth voters set a record for the lowest youth voter turnout ever recorded”.

Baskin advises politicians to “first convince [the Millennial voting bloc] to come out and vote”. Pensacola News Journal’s “Youth vote holds heavy weight” article presents a graph of Florida voter registration by generation in January 2016. It reflects the Wall Street Journal’s findings that this year is the first in which millennial voters will match baby boomers as a share of the electorate. According to the graph, Millennials comprise 24% and Baby Boomers make up 34% of those registered to vote.

I saw myself in “Youth vote holds heavy weight”; specifically, in the account of Libby Sasse, a 19-year old who has not been involved in the progression of candidates’ campaigns as her friend Caroline Dean (18-years old) has been. Nevertheless, Sasse states that “I want to be involved, and I plan to vote in November, but I want to make sure to make an informed decision”. That is exactly my sentiment – but if I am not keeping up to date with the presidential debates, how can I?

The New York Times cited a report that declares that the vote of youth will make up about one-third of the votes cast. It underlines how the “heavy weight” in the Pensacola News Journal’s article title should not be undervalued! The Southern Poverty Law Center’s Civil Rights Memorial has sparked a fire within me to take advantage of the right to vote and to become enlightened in the political arena. By shedding the weight of being a non-voting citizen, I will be able to wear the “Protect Civil Rights” button with pride!