Why young people should get involved with politics

By: Cristina Velasco, Student Voices writer

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I’m a 21-year-old Spanish girl and I love politics. I’m not the only one, but there is a large number young people who think that politics is not important. Politics is very important for our future and our family members’ future. When you vote, you decide the person you think that it’s going to change the country and bring the best, but there are young people who don’t vote - and that’s a wrong decision.

Another thing that I want to talk about is joining a party. In the UK, there are some young people who are joining a political party, but not enough. I think that more young people should think about joining a political party, because young voices are precious nowadays. And they could find their right party in lots of ways: watching political debates or interviews, reading posts or interviews, doing some research on the official party websites.

In my opinion, the most interesting way is to go to a conference speech, because you can see a politician speaking and you can meet him/her. Also, you can meet lots of amazing people who can help you with your doubts about the party.

Last year I went to a conference speech delivered by Pedro Sánchez (leader of PSOE, that is the Spanish Labour Party) and I shook hands with him. It was the best experience of my life! That day, I decided to join PSOE and I will do it in a short time.I support the Labour Party,too.I supported Ed Miliband’s  campaign and I enjoyed a lot that experience,although I suffered because media and the Tories bullied him. Thanks to him, I decided to get involved in politics. I supported Jeremy Corbyn’s campaign to be the leader of the Labour Party and on the election day I couldn’t stop crying because of his victory.

Now, I’m very worried about Spain’s future and I’m getting involved in Sadiq Khan’s campaign from Spain.

I have to say that thanks to politics, I have made lots of British and American friends who are amazing and understand me. I felt alone because I suffered bullying and I had no friends. But now, I feel better and I have some people to have a chat with.

I don’t write this to speak about my experience in politics, I write this to tell young people to raise their voice and get involved in politics. It doesn’t matter if you support Nigel Farage, Tim Farron or Jeremy Corbyn, it’s your decision. If you’re happy with your political views, you’re happy. Don’t be afraid, your voice is important.

On the other hand, other young people decide their vote because of their parents. If they develop their own opinions, which are the same as their parents' then this is fine.  But if they don’t know about political parties or policies, voting the same way as their parents is wrong. For example, I grew up in a family who is left-wing. My Father joined PSOE in the 80’s and my mother has always voted PSOE,too. I’m a PSOE supporter, like them, but I decided that on my own, not because of them. My Father’s idol is Felipe González, but I prefer Ed Miliband. Making our own decisions in relation to politics is very important.

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Meet the author:

Cristina Velasco

Writer

Biography: I’m a 21-year-old English student currently living in Almería, Spain. I’m the only Spanish member of 'Milifandom' and I’d like to be a politician in the future. Twitter: @cristinacalgary

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