Voter
turnout in federal elections has been steadily decreasing for the last twenty years:
in 1988 it sat at 75 per cent, and by 2008 it had dropped to 59 per cent. In
2008, 5.9 per cent of Canadians reported that they were involved in a political
party or group. Also in 2008, 13 per cent said they had contacted a newspaper or
politician to express their views, 24 per cent signed a petition, 19 per cent
attended a public meeting, and 3 per cent participated in a protest or march.
Although these numbers decreased from 2003, the number of Canadians who said they
had searched for information on a political issue in the 12 months prior to the
survey did increase from 24 per cent in 2003 to 27 per cent in 2008.
These
things are all related, and they speak volumes about the present state of our
society. Although being an active participant in society cannot be reduced to
your involvement in politics, they certainly play an important role in painting
a picture of what we as citizens of society are likely to do. Most importantly,
these statistics tell us that Canadians are headed down a dangerous path when
we increasingly ignore the world around us.
When
I was younger, I wasn’t aware of current events. I didn’t know anything about
politics, world issues, didn’t care for history classes; until one day, I
started taking classes like Civil Studies and Law with Mr. Adair. Sometimes,
all it takes is one good experience with current events to change your opinion
about their importance.
In
the first class of Civic Studies, he told us, “If there’s one thing you can do
for homework, I want you to watch the news every night.” He wanted his students
to be critical thinkers, not passively unaware members of society.
Although
I learned this lesson in high school, it is difficult to ensure we remain
informed members of society as we progress into adulthood. Despite the fact
that it is not easy, we must work to educate each other and encourage dialogue about
what we are reading and seeing every single day. It cannot be emphasized enough
how important this is.
Imagine
if we ignored current events altogether. What would happen? We would become a
very suppressed and ignorant society. It would be so much easier for
corporations and governments to control our lives, we wouldn’t be helping others
when disaster hits and we wouldn’t be able to protect ourselves. Life would be
very grim and chaotic. It is in this situation that I now understand the phrase
“knowledge is power” and I am ready to be powerful.
We
can start off with conversation. I don’t know about you, but sometimes you need
a conversation starter and it feels good to talk about something other than the
show you watched last night on TV, or the latest gossip about people’s relationships.
It feels good to exercise your brain and feel smart; to share ideas, thoughts
and opinions on what will one day be part of history. I always want to talk
about something interesting I’ve read in the news. Too often we overlook how fascinating
real life can really be.
Not
everyone is like me, but I did become more active and motivated when I knew
more about the world. Imagine how much we all could accomplish if this was the
case. If everyone knew what was going on, everyone could develop opinions and
potentially get involved and we could truly initiate change.
It’s like what people say at election time: “If you didn’t vote, you have no right to complain about who got elected.” Everyone who’s part of a proper conversation or debate should be able to back up or explain what they’re saying. How did you develop your opinion and where did it come from? If you don’t know what you’re talking about, you have no right to complain. We must do our research before we start spouting off about how much we hate our Member of Parliament. We saw a very important example of people coming together, finding information, and beginning conversations about it with the American legislation pertaining to the Internet.
Everyone
uses the Internet and everyone shares information and entertainment with each other
online. It’s accessible, but we may lose the right to share information openly
and freely. Although the American SOPA and PIPA have been put on hold, Canada’s
Bill C-11 is on the horizon and we need to speak out just as loudly against it.
If everyone makes themselves aware about these pieces of legislation, we can
form an opinion, get involved, take action, and make a difference.
An
even bigger and more relevant issue, for students especially, are the high
tuition fees and insane amounts of debt that go along with it. In B.C. over the
past ten years, tuition fees have more than doubled, and the average student
debt is $27,000. My Ontario student loan has interest of $4 a day. We are
entering a generation of debt and there are ways we can stop this from
happening if we educate ourselves and get involved.
As
Mr. Adair said, the best thing you can do is start by watching the news. If you
are reading up on current events, make sure you are also checking your sources
and find a variety of stories to compare with in order to get a balanced point
of view. Biases are always present, and unbalanced information can also be
misleading. Inform yourself about everything, so that you’ll be able to
participate fully as a citizen of the world.
Alyssa
is a recent graduate from the Acting for Stage and Screen Program here at Cap
and is excited to be trying her hand at writing articles. She is currently
writing a few plays, hosting a monthly variety night, and is the new President
of The NOW! Organization.
//Alyssa Kostello, columnist
//Alyssa Kostello, columnist
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