 "Photo: Shawn Wright / The South End")
The Rock the Vote bus tour made a pit stop at Wayne State on Oct. 22 with tons of excitement. Sure, there was lots of merchandise for sale, a lot of free posters and stickers, and good music playing. However, the main focus of the concert was to encourage young people to make their voices heard on Election Day.
During what is perceived to be the most important election year in U.S. history, the youth vote is essentially crucial. Jasmine Moore, a second year pre-med student at Wayne State, explains: “These days, the youth population is large and ultimately, the youth is going to be affected by the vote.”
Perhaps the biggest issue affecting the youth today is the declining economy. Second-year communications major Crystal Opiukwa said, “The recession is terrible, tuition is too high for most people to pay, so that is a main issue for us.”
Moore said youth would ultimately retaliate through violence.
“I think the youth will act out because they’re going to feel like it’s nothing they can do,” she said. “Times are getting hard.”
The Rock the Vote event reaffirmed young voters that by going to the ballots, they can make a difference in their future and the future of their government.
Nick Brown, official blogger and photographer for the campaign, said, “When people talk about Iraq and Afghanistan, that’s our generation fighting that war. When we talk about our national debt, that’s our generation that is going to inherit it.”
Brown said the whole purpose of Rock the Vote is “to show Washington that we care about our government.”
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