Politics is simple. It’s the means to effect change and ensure our values, democracy and freedoms exist for our generation and generations to come.
Atlanta is privileged to be represented by U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a great example of a lifetime of public service. Lewis began his decades-long career in politics at a young age and has served the people of Atlanta and America ever since.
He once said, “When I was 15 years old and in the 10th grade, I heard of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Three years later, when I was 18, I met Dr. King, and we became friends. Two years after that, I became very involved in the civil rights movement. I was in college at that time. As I got more and more involved, I saw politics as a means of bringing about change.”
This statement is a great example for all Atlantans, Georgians and Americans. Youth is not a limit to political involvement or inspiring change; youth is an asset!
Young Georgians know Democrats fight for them every day at every level of government. From student loan reform to job creation, and from marriage equality to health care reform, it has been the Democratic Party fighting for the next generation.
So why is youth political leadership so important in Georgia?
Georgia is an incredibly young state, and young voters are a huge voting bloc. Forty-six percent of Georgia’s electorate is under the age of 35 and, with more than 25 percent of Georgians under the age of 18, that number is positioned to grow in the future.
This year, Georgia’s young people have a great example of younger leaders taking strong positions and running for high office in state Sen. Jason Carter. At 39, Carter is still a Young Democrat who fights every day for the youngest Georgians in his unflinching advocacy for the HOPE Scholarship.
Carter is a great example to all Young Democrats. We have already seen increasing and more energized membership because he is engaging young voters and activists early in his campaign. However, our organization is not simply sitting on its hands until a great champion arises.
From college campuses in Young Harris to high schools in Bryan County and young professional clubs in Atlanta, the Young Democrats of Georgia is organizing young people to not only put Democrats in the Senate and governor’s office, but to build the framework for a bench of progressive leaders from the city council to the state Legislature.
Yes, this is hard work. It takes time. We are young, and a little hard work doesn’t scare us.
Steven Golden is president of the Young Democrats of Georgia; Atima Omara is president of the Young Democrats of America.
