As kids, our history books and social freedoms constantly reminded us that we live in one of the greatest and most democratic countries in the world. We have been taught to look at our founding fathers like idols, as they created a system of government that aimed to give each person a political voice. The values of our founding fathers manifests itself in our constitution, and these original seven articles continue to serve as a template for how we should interpret political choices. The true democracy in our government is represented through historical figures like Martin Luther King and Harvey Milk, who proved that one person’s voice is strong enough to initiate social and legal change in our country. The stories of these triumphs fuels us, a constant reminder that we are living in a country where our voices will never be considered too small or obsolete to create change.
To me, it feels like we are currently living in a moment of time where these voices have never been more important. Two weeks ago, I woke up the day after my birthday and was greeted by my entire family watching CNN as it live broadcasted the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting in American history. The shooter, who had pledged his allegiance to ISIS, managed to legally purchase guns and ammunition despite being on the FBI’s no-fly list. This appeared to be a catastrophic loophole, and a blatant example of how gun control in America is frail and dangerous. I saw Americans, both on the left and right of the political spectrum, cry out in despair that we are living in a period of time in which a suspected terrorist could legally purchase weapons. However, just a week later, “the Senate rejected first a Republican proposal to update the background check system for gun purchases, which would have required states to add more information on mental health records to a national database. It also included a provision to alert law enforcement agencies when an individual who was on a government terror watch list in the last five years buys a gun” (CNN). Rulings like this have never made me feel so hopeless as an American citizen. This feeling of hopelessness has accumulated within me as I see these senseless tragedies happen over and over again with no legislative action taken.
My anger has turned to submissiveness as I continue to see our government make decisions that will continue raising the death toll of innocent American citizens. Anger has turned to submissiveness as I see senators stand on their feet for 14 hours as they filibuster these bills, with no change once they decide to sit down. I’m tired of being submissive- I’m tired of accepting that our country will be subservient to these mass shootings. So, instead of being submissive, I’m going to appeal. Appeal to everyone reading this, appeal to everyone as tired as I am.
This country is predicated on change. We assert that we’re the best country in the world, yet are shocked when we remain to be the only country in the world prone to this quantity of mass shootings, as if there is nothing we can do to help it. We are failing ourselves as citizens if we accept a role of passiveness. Updating your Facebook status and changing your profile picture is a microscopic step towards any sort of real legislative change. Get out of your chair and go to the polls. And I’m not referring just to the presidential candidacy. Although it’s extremely important to go vote during the presidential candidacies, our government was established in order to prevent one person ever gaining full control of the country, maintaining a democratic system at all times. Which means that proposed gun control bills like the one that was recently rejected starts and ends in the legislative branch. Instead of posting rants about Obama when a bill gets rejected, dig deeper into the democratic process and learn that by not voting, you might have indirectly voted for one of the congressmen who rejected the bill. The bottom line is that there is a clear and tragic problem of mass shootings in our country, and the only way to help end this massacre is by going out and voting. Be the change that you want to see.
I’m not writing this to be pessimistic or to question our country’s democratic competency. Our country is more than competent, and there is a reason that hundreds of governments in the world have modeled their political institutions after ours. We just need to realize that our government is founded by the people, for the people. We have the power to change the world we live in. Our fathers guaranteed us a right to vote.
Go out and vote.
