Opinion: Due to the increased control the unelected Supreme Court has over American life, young people feel helpless to make change in their society. Will voting accomplish needed change?
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With the overturning of Roe v. Wade and other recent events, young people are as disillusioned with the government as ever.

It is so easy to fall into the mindset that violence is the only answer; it is so easy to believe that only unrest will solve our problems. I know because I’ve been there, too. But threats of violence against elected officials are not the answer.

There is a common belief among some far-right conservatives that the Constitution allows citizens to overthrow the government if it is deemed tyrannical.
However, this is not the case; while it is sometimes claimed the Constitution says this, simple Google searches prove otherwise. This revolutionary phrasing is instead found within the Declaration of Independence, which is of course a non-legal document that cannot be cited within the law.

What the Constitution allows for, however, is the ability to do away with an unfit government via reform, elections and voting. Voting is something you can do if you’re over 18, by the way.

A similar mindset to the alt-right is being expressed by many young people; both sides are equally bad, Biden and the Democrats are too corporate (despite being pro-union) and voting for such candidates is incomprehensible. Thus, the only solution would be to protest, riot or worse.

The world is changing, and change is needed to meet it. People feel helpless and hopeless, and like they have no control over their government. So, naturally people want to tear the system down. It is within your right to protest, but protesting alone will have no effect if you don’t use your voice and vote for the change you want.
The 2022 midterm elections are on their way this November 8, and they could determine who controls Congress during a crucial time in this country’s history.

According to the 2020 NSLVE Campus Report, the nationwide Average Institutional Voting Rate increased from 53% in 2016, to 66% in 2020. However, UO’s voting rate was unchanged from 2016, remaining at 56% in 2020 despite the large effort to encourage students to vote.
This time around, that effort seems nonexistent. This is likely because this is not a presidential election, and thus, in the partied-out, bombed-up minds of UO students, this election doesn’t matter.

This is furthermore displayed by the fact that, among 18-21 year-olds, only 38% voted in the 2018 midterms, compared with 47% in 2016’s general election and 50% in 2020’s general election, as stated by the 2020 NSLVE Campus Report. Of course, these numbers increase steadily among age groups; if you need an additional reason to vote, then not voting is immature.
In the 2020 election, various student groups — many of whom were unrelated to each other and weren’t voting-centered — came together to get the vote out. Now it’s time to do it again. Every student group should be putting in more effort to encourage students to vote, not only is it  the right thing to do, but many of their collective interests (like climate justice) involve pushing for legislative action.

So for those of you reading this: vote. Please. Just vote. C’mon, I’m begging you.