On the third of November, 40,000 students from every corner of the country marched from the Garden of Remembrance to Government buildings, and if you’re reading this, there is a very good chance you were one of them. I was one of a lucky handful who stood onstage overseeing the massed crowd as they chanted in unison “I am a vote.” We never thought that day how important that phrase would become so soon. We marched that day because we are sick of constantly being targeted, constantly being hit up for spare change by a government that is too afraid to ask anyone else. We have been bled dry, and we marched in the hope that someone in power would listen and for once value the societal impact students and the educated have for society.
Ultimately, students are a soft target, and young people’s concerns are routinely cast aside by TDs and Ministers. That is realpolitik. Students and young people don’t vote in large enough numbers to make us important to people whose single foremost preoccupation is re-election. On Monday afternoon last, an extraordinary sight met anyone walking through the Arts block. A queue of 400 young people waiting for the Garda to sign the form and register to vote. Finally, it seems the sleeping giant of youth political interest has awoken.
Step one was to register to vote, and that having been achieved, there is now an imperative to use that vote, and wisely. When I say vote wisely, I don’t mean don’t be hung-over when you’re in the polling station, I mean learn who is asking you to vote for them. In some ways putting your name on a ballot paper is the single greatest act of arrogance any person can commit – make them prove they deserve your vote.
If a candidate calls to your door, ask them about education, poverty, unemployment, foreign aid, gay marriage, whatever it is you care about. If their answer is unsatisfactory don’t vote for them – regardless of them coming from the family party. That is not a good enough reason to vote for someone. If their answer sounds good, make sure they aren’t just trying to get out of an awkward corner. These people’s job is to represent your interests, so it is very important to make sure they actually believe what they are saying.
Read manifestos and election literature. Watch TV debates. Listen to local radio and attend local debates. At the end of this process you might be shocked to realise that you actually support “X” party rather than “Y” party. That’s ok. That’s the process.
Most importantly of all. On the 25th of February, go home and VOTE. We have received a concession from the University that you will be allowed to go after 12 noon. Everyone realises this is an epoch-changing election. Make sure you are part of it and VOTE!
