Guys, even if you are disappointed with the results of the election, you now know that our generation has a voice, a very LOUD voice, and that our opinions and votes are important. If your candidate did not win the presidency, it's okay. You have four years to create a party that better represents you, your ideas, your vision for the future. We, as millennials, as the eco-boom, must not become a lost generation. We must continue to vote, continue to participate, and continue to educate ourselves, then we will all be a part of change.
But seriously, I am proud of every single one of you. This election, this entire campaign season, has made us all feel something. It has ignited passion on both sides. It has pinpointed the issues that mean the most to every single one of us as twenty-somethings finding our way in the world. It has sparked an intense need for change, but more than that, a willingness to change the the things we thought we could not. A passion for the political process, a passion for the leaders of a country we all love and respect.
We learned that our vote matters, that we are the demographic that every party needs. It's up to us to sculpt the future of America.
Look at the specific ballot items that passed last night: We legalized marijuana in Colorado. We gave equal rights to all couples in Maryland and Minnesota. We elected new members of the House and the Senate.
We voted and we changed the way America works. We voted to move our country forward, no matter which side of the fence our vote was cast on. We live in a country that allows us to participate, to dialogue and engage with each other and our leaders. That is greatness. That is love.
We have a chance to change history, to make our lives what we want them to be, to restructure political lines and parties to fit who we are, to reflect what we believe. We have, if nothing else, learned how to care for something more than just OUR needs and ourselves.
So, even if you feel that your vote didn't matter, that it didn't do anything, that it was a waste, and you are feeling frustrated and want to give up and move out of the country for the next four years, know that your vote made it exciting, made it a race, made it a debate, that it made you feel something other than the materialistic narcism we so often catch ourselves caught up in; this election made you feel.
These candidates made you feel. They made you have hope in a time where our country seems to be falling apart at the seams. They were challenged by the questions you posed, they were forced to think outside of the box, to try and reach across the aisle separating political ideals, they did it all to gain your vote and your trust.
Guys, you believed. You worked hard, you spoke out, you found your voice. Nothing else matters in the end except for that. So, let's not lose the momentum. Let us continue to vote in every election, to mobilize and take our plans and truths to elected officials, to campaign for a greener future, a sustainable future, a more stable future.
I am proud of each and every one of you. Thank you for voting, thank you for debating with me on twitter, for posting your ideas in a non-combative way, for presenting things intelligently, for finding a passion and a cause and most of all for believing in something other than yourselves and a higher power. Thank you for voting.
