An enthusiastic effort on October 12 registered 34 Eleanor Roosevelt High School (ERHS) students age 16 and above to vote. ERHS senior Arsalan Siddiqui, chair of the Greenbelt Youth Advisory Committee (YAC), along with Deborah Mitchell and Juanita Watts, co-president and membership chair from the Prince George’s County branch of the League of Women Voters, staffed a table outside the cafeteria. They were there to offer a plethora of voting information along with voter registration forms. Siddiqui said he wanted “to give young people a voice on issues that affect them.” Mitchell added that she was there seeking to accomplish her organization’s credo to empower citizens with information concerning the voting process.
The Youth Vote
Greenbelt residents that are 16 and 17, although not able to vote this November, can vote in next year’s city council election. The YAC was an important factor in encouraging the council to consider allowing the 16-year-old vote. The issue, a question in last year’s city elections, was approved by the voters and enacted by council. The YAC was looking for ways to encourage Greenbelt’s youth to vote. Following the school shooting in Parkland, Fla., it has become a national trend to work on encouraging youth to vote.
“The Parkland shooting made us realize that we need to have a voice on issues that affect us. If young people don’t speak up, no one else will,” stated Siddiqui.
For more on this story, see the October 18 News Review
