“Congress shall make no law…abridging the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government,” states the first amendment of the United States Constitution.
While few Americans can recite all 27 constitutional amendments, the first one is a point of national pride, ingrained in every American from the time they become a citizen. Since the Trump administration has taken office, calls for these rights to be exercised have been plentiful.
On April 1, Senator Cory Booker spoke for 25 hours and 5 minutes without sitting or relinquishing the floor, officially beating the record for the longest speech on the Senate floor. He critiqued the current administration by powerfully covering immigration healthcare, economic threats, DOGE, education, civil rights, and more.
Four days later, the Hands-Off movement, launched with the goal of protesting actions of the Trump administration surrounding economic tariffs, gender equality, LGBTQ+ rights, immigration, and more, hosted over 1,200 peaceful demonstrations in all 50 states and multiple countries. The effort continued on April 19, when the 50501 organization, which stands for “50 protests, 50 states, 1 movement”, aided in the organization of another round of demonstrations that commemorated 250 years since the first shot of the American revolution was fired.
While all of these efforts often seem far away, in reality, these movements are closer to home than ever.
“I went to a protest in Issaquah, and there was a really big crowd for a suburb. It was completely packed. There must have been over 500 people from all ages with all different types of signs,” junior Kelsey Burnett said.
Burnett was not the only one from the Liberty community in attendance, but she appeared to be in the minority of teenagers who attended the protests.
“A majority of people were older than me, which was surprising. A lot of folks who lived through the 60s and 70s were like, ‘We’re not going back,’ an anonymous Liberty community member who attended the Seattle demonstration said, “I also saw a lot of people with their kids. What I didn’t see was a lot of high school and college age kids.”
Despite the rise of social media and increased political division, members of Gen-Z and Gen Alpha continue to be less and less aware and involved.
“I haven’t seen much youth activism. It’s discouraging. I know the culture of my generation is that if it’s not something that you can just repost, people don’t do anything. Having 10,000 people at a protest and having something reposted 10,000 times are not the same,” Burnett said.
There is an ideological gap that exists between past generations and those who haven’t been raised with the same evidence of protest being historically effective.
“Apathy has spread too much. Young people feel like they don’t have any voice in the matter, but they do. s soon as you turn 18, your voice counts,” Liberty community member said.
Even before you turn 18, people like Burnett prove that there is much that can be done.
“Go to town hall, go to a protest, make sure you watch the news. Exercising your freedom to consume as much knowledge as you can is one of the best things you can do,” Burnett said. “People who say there’s nothing that they can do are just not reaching out enough to find the things they can do.”
Protesting is not the only way to get involved-opportunities for youth in government are plentiful.
“As a high schooler, I worked on three different political campaigns. I also worked as a page in Olympia, and I worked for a law firm for a short stint. A lot of people will talk about things that they don’t like, but not actually do anything about it. I’ve actually been able to make some small change, in my world, at least,” senior Landon Saino, who is going on to pursue a degree in political science, said.
Beyond these opportunities, the Issaquah Youth Advisory Board, youth-representative positions on city boards, internships through programs like Teens in Public Service, and volunteer programs through non-profits are all great ways to get your voice out there as a high-schooler.
As a citizen of a democracy, youth have a unique responsibility to educate and involve themselves, and this right is taken for granted far too often.
“One of my friends who lives in China reached out. She was asking if anyone was going to a Hands-Off protest in any city because she lives in China, and they can’t protest. So I felt a real need to do something,” Liberty Community member said.
Protests and activism only work if enough people stand up, and recently, the group failing to do so have largely been teenagers.
“Inaction is action in itself. Just stewing in helplessness is not helping anyone. Not you, not your community, not the cause you believe in. Take some initiative,” Burnett said.
