In an age of deepening political divides, young voices matter more than ever.
Donald Trump’s first term as President remains so controversial and unforgettable that many Americans might remember exactly where they were when they received the news that the former media personality was declared President-elect of the United States of America. I notably was a politically-unaware fifth grade student unsure of what terms like “Republican” or “Democrat” could denote and I was not interested in learning so. Besides, I lived in south Mississippi, where the Conservative trend of politics are constant.
However, over the few months leading up to the night when the political ceiling was shattered—for better or for worse—by an outsider who emboldened his supporters and infuriated his opponents, something had awoken inside of me. I was young and didn’t know two things about government or politics, but watching these men and women argue so heatedly and passionately on national television about what seemed to a child to be trivial things gave me a sense of urgency. I felt almost as if something was calling me to action.
American politics have become more turbulent with each passing day. Voices rise louder and the actions that follow often become more vicious. Many talk of the power that the younger generations will have in the future, but what about the power that we have now? Now, I’m not suggesting that more fifth graders who are still learning the multiplication table pick up protest signs and become engaged in local, regional, and national politics—though, with the direction our country is taking, it wouldn’t surprise me if our leaders actually did suggest that. However, it is worth mentioning the value that younger adults add in the conversations regarding policy and the future.
My name is Kai Dunagan, a local student at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, government major, and aspiring young community leader, and it is my belief that it is a necessity for more young adults to start caring about politics now, not in the future. The Mississippi Gulf Coast has been my home and the home to many others, and it saddens me that so many choose to leave it behind. We face issues unique only to our region that cannot be solved by big political names in Washington, D.C. or tech geniuses in Los Angeles, California.
The Gulf Coast Voice will be an outlet to not only confront the obstacles we face in the progression and development of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but also to boast of the strengths that make our cities, bays, bayous, beaches, forests, and oceans truly great. The State of Mississippi is to me the most important battleground in creating real change—change that brings prosperity and opportunity. The challenges affecting Mississippi are unlike those in any other place.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast has watched passively as our leaders repetitively propose mundane policies that offer no creativity in confronting the problems that keep our region and our state in a frozen state of stagnation. It is essential that young adults on both sides of the political aisle join the conversation and work together to offer meaningful solutions that actually apply to the Gulf Coast’s problems: namely our crumbling infrastructure, dwindling educational opportunities, a lack of economic diversity, or even the fact that many parts of our region still have not fully recovered from past natural disasters.
It’s of course important to recognize that the resources our leaders are working with are tight at best and enacting bold initiatives to address these concerns and others takes both courage and innovative thinking. This makes it especially vital that younger residents of the Gulf Coast get involved, as the consequences of these complications will fall on us. We hope the Gulf Coast Voice will prove to be a credible and effective channel to discuss the obstacles facing the Mississippi gulf coast and explore the remedies we can use to curtail them.