a teenagers take on the current political situation

This year made one thing painfully clear politics isn’t something happening “far away” in Washington it’s happening right in our schools, our homes, our phones, and our futures. Whether we like it or not, the decisions made by people in power shape almost every part of our lives. And pretending politics doesn’t matter doesn’t protect us. It only makes us easier to ignore.

I don’t support Trump or Harrison. But that doesn’t mean I get to sit out the conversation. It means I have to pay even closer attention to the issues, because the issues are what actually affecting not just me but us our futures.

When people say, “I don’t care about politics,” they usually mean they don’t care about politicians. But politics is the price of groceries, the safety of our schools, the rights we have over our own bodies, he privacy of our data, the quality of our healthcare, the rules of the internet, the future of our planet None of that is optional None of that is “just drama.” It’s real.

When us young people stay silent, laws get passed without us. Decisions get made without us. And the people who do show up. even if they’re misinformed and end up shaping the world we have to live in. Ignoring politics doesn’t make it disappear. It just makes the consequences hit harder.

A lot of people don’t realize how quickly rights can change. Court decisions, state laws, federal policies they can expand or restrict freedom overnight. Staying informed is how we make sure we’re not caught off guard. Knowing your rights isn’t “being political. "It’s being prepared.

The United States exists because Indigenous land was taken through violence, forced removal, broken treaties, and colonization. That’s not an opinion it’s documented history.

When people say, “go back where you came from,” they forget that the only people who didn’t come from somewhere else are Indigenous communities. Everyone else is living on land that was taken.

Across the country, laws affecting women’s bodily autonomy, healthcare access, and safety have changed dramatically. Court decisions and state policies have created confusion, fear, and unequal access to care.

Equal rights apply to everyone, not just the groups people feel comfortable supporting. That includes women, LGBTQ+, poc, immigrants, disabled people, Indigenous and people religious minorities Equal rights means NOBODY GETS LEFT BEHIND.

NOBODY is illegal on STOLE land. 

When people try to claim ownership over who belongs in America, they ignore the truth: this country was built on displacement and forced migration.

You cannot call people “illegal” on land that was taken illegally. You cannot claim purity on land built by diversity. You cannot erase history just because it’s uncomfortable.

Rights are not guaranteed. History is not clean. Equality is not optional.

We owe it to ourselves and to the generations coming after us so stay aware, stay educated, and stay bold. Because if we don’t protect our rights, someone else will decide them for US.