College campuses have always been a traditional hub of liberal views and the Democratic Party. I personally go to school in a bright red state, but there's no denying the overwhelming lack of conservatism within my campus. The college Republicans still exist of course, but they are most definitely outliers who have to defend their views in ways that the college Democrats do not. But outside of the university, the roles are reversed and liberal college students are not taken seriously.
They are often dismissed as young, entitled, and inexperienced. Some believe they haven't been out in "the real world" and only educate themselves based on the mainstream media which is always left-leaning. It's expected for college students to vote along party lines and adhere to the agenda of the Democratic party, but it's not expected for these people to actually believe and understand what they're voting for. Especially given the fact that the voter turnout rates of 18-29 year olds are always so depressingly low.
Therefore, even when a young, liberal-minded college student has an informed opinion, it won't be valued. As a left-leaning college student, I ask that people "in the real world" work to change this stigma. The United States has an issue with voter turnout nationwide. About fifty percent of eligible voters exercise that right and as we criticize the non-voters when we should be wondering what it is that holds people back from voting.
Though I personally voted in the 2016 General Election (I'm a registered independent who could not vote in the primary), I met many other students who chose not to do so. Of course, this past election will remain infamous for its extremely unpopular candidates, but that didn't make it any less important. Young people have truly struggled to find the need to vote. I believe that this stems from the fact that their opinions are not taken seriously by the political parties and the adults who engage them in political debate.
Take Bernie Sanders's campaign for example. He was the perfect stereotypical candidate for liberal college students. But why? As the stereotype goes, these liberal students are entitled, and "Democratic Socialism" is a party that entertains said entitlement. Especially when one of his main platforms was free college tuition. It was an easy assumption that his supporters were simply looking for handouts. But as this was to be the first election in which many students could actually vote, most of them took it seriously and saw a candidate that was actually addressing their major concerns. Student debt has always been an issue for college graduates, and even if they chose a candidate solely for that reason, it shows that they are making an effort to be informed voters.
So as difficult as it may be to listen to the twenty-year-old philosophy major who still wears Bernie propaganda about their political views, please try. This is a country meant to practice a peaceful exchange of ideas, and to simply dismiss a person because of their youthful ideals will only continue the cycle of disenfranchised voters who don't believe that their vote matters. Also, although I write this in the defense of liberal students, conservative students deserve the same equal treatment for their opinions. Even if a person drifts along the political spectrum throughout their life, his or her values in college should be treated just as seriously as the values that they hold later on.
