Ellington

In a story printed in our one of the JFP's youth voting issues, Jane Eisner argues that older people should help young people celebrate the right to vote—and give them a reason to vote:

We have to help young people connect the dots, to understand that it is not enough to serve soup in a soup kitchen—we must work to end the conditions that caused hunger in the first place.

Unfortunately, a decline in civic education in American schools over the last three decades has left young people unaware of the principles of democracy and the role of local, state and national governments. In our rush to improve verbal and math testing scores, we've dropped one of the most essential roles of schools in a democracy: to help the next generation learn the tools necessary to become active citizens.

We haven't given young people a reason to vote, and they have acted accordingly. Yet, as we are seeing in the heightened interest in this 2004 presidential election campaign, these trends can turn around. Compelling issues and exciting candidates help, of course, but in the long run, the nation needs to address more fundamental obstacles to voting.

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