Despite the idealistic promise of a democracy in which every voice matters, our American political system consistently over-values the voices and interests of some over the concerns of many. Part of this stems from the fact that we live in a country in which civic participation is low, youth civic participation is lower, and the voices that are most excluded are those from communities that are, and historically have been, underserved including low income communities, rural communities, and communities of color. These communities, which have had disproportionately little access to well resourced schools, government services, and community services, engage at lower rates than high income, urban and suburban, and white communities. These realities point to a society that perpetuates historical political and economic inequities. There are many reasons and root causes for this historical political inequality ranging from systemic and structural barriers to participation, to discrepancies in access to and quality of youth civics education, and beyond. A principle cause is our collective inability to ensure that young voices, and especially those from underserved communities, are adequately represented in the political system.
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Website: | Visit Publisher Website |
Publisher: | Generation Citizen |
Published: | August 12, 2019 |
License: | Public Domain |