With the presidential election getting closer and closer, it’s becoming more important to know what your candidates stand for. We all know what Donald Trump seems to stand for because that’s all the media seems to be covering. Trump this, Trump that, “Oh look! Donald Trump said 7/11 instead of 9/11.” As the young people of America, it is imperative to know what each candidate says about topics important to us. Bernie Sanders is targeting all the issues that should be close to our hearts and what will help us as the future leaders of this country. I want to point out the positions Sanders holds on important topics and show you why he should be getting each and every one of our votes.
1. He wants to fight for women's rights.
Gender inequality is still a big issue in this country. Yes, we are able to vote. Yes, we can have executive jobs. Yes, we can go to college but that doesn’t mean we are equal to men. Sanders wants to fix the gender pay gap, making pay equal for men and women. He wants to “expand and protect the reproductive rights of women.” This would expand funding for Planned Parenthood and the Title X family planning program. He would protect a woman’s health, access contraception and availability of a safe and legal abortion.
2. He wants to fight for LGBT equality.
In fact, Sanders has been fighting for LGBT equality for many, many years. He wants to “enact any law that prohibits discrimination against any LGBT people”. In addition, he wants to “require police departments to adopt policies to ensure fairer interactions with transgender people, especially transgender women of color who are often targeted by police unfairly.”
"I believe in justice and to equal rights whether you are black, whether you are Hispanic, whether you're gay, whether you're transgender, you are a human being."
3. He wants to create jobs for all Americans.
This is especially important because the unemployment rates in this country is astounding (and not in a good way). America’s infrastructure is collapsing at a rapid pace. Many bridges and roads are not at the quality they should be at. I know in my own town, you can’t go three feet without hitting a pothole. By enacting the Rebuilding America Act, he will invest $1 trillion over five years to help rebuild roads and bridges, fix airports and railways, water systems throughout the country and many, many more things. Enabling this act will provide a whopping 13 million Americans with jobs.
4. He wants to increase the minimum wage.
Minimum wage in this country is not high enough for people who have this as a full-time job. A person who is working 40 hours a week and making minimum wage is living in poverty. Sanders believes that a person working a full-time job making minimum wage should not be living in poverty. He wants to raise the minimum wage to $15/hr. This will help bring the American people out of poverty.
5. He wants to make college tuition free and debt-free.
A majority of you reading this article are in college just like myself. And as you know, going to college is not cheap. Sanders wants to cut student loan interest rates down from 4.29 percent to 2.37 percent and make tuition to public colleges and universities free. He also wants to get universities to meet 100 percent of the financial needs of the lowest income students while also working on the federal work study program to “build valuable career experience that will help them after they graduate.”
Bernie Sanders is really looking out for the youth of America to make this country better for them and for those who come after them. He is fighting for issues close to our hearts in hopes to really accomplish the goals he has set. It is important we understand the people who are running for the presidency.
"[We have four beautiful kids and seven incredible grandchildren and] I want to make sure that the country we leave them is a nation that we are proud of." - Bernie Sanders
