Student Union
5,000 New Voters Registered at #March4OurLives
At combined #March4OurLives events — which drew tens of thousands to march in protest of gun violence across America — nearly 5,000 people registered to vote.
Most were younger than 30, said Aaron Ghitelman, communications director of HeadCount, a voter registration organization that registers mostly younger voters at concerts and music festivals.
The team at HeadCount used their expertise in crowded and chaotic environments to help people register at the March 30 rallies, including New York City and Washington, D.C.
“When Emma Gonzalez gave that incredible speech that ended with a call to everybody to register to vote, it was like, ‘Okay, what can we do?’” Ghitelman told VOA, referring to youth activist Gonzalez and her classmates, who since surviving the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, have driven more youths to participate in politics.
While 18 is the age when Americans can vote, they can be registered as early as 16 years old in some states. HeadCount as well as USA.gov offers guidelines on their websites.
Ghitelman said a tweet announcing their list of state rules for registration was retweeted more than 20,000 times.
"There was a lot of interest in that list,” he said, especially among people who did not know voters could be registered before age 18.
HeadCount partnered with grassroots organizations such as HipHopCaucus, Mi Familia Vota, Voto Latino, League of Women Voters, Rock the Vote, Voterise and Fair Elections Legal Network (FELN). He said HeadCount and its partners, armed with clipboards and information sheets about state laws for voters, registered people from 41 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
According to a study by Tufts university, college student voter turnout increased slightly in 2016 compared to the 2012 election, but still, at 48.3 percent, was less than half of American college students voting.
In the 2016 presidential election, however, for the first time, Millennials and Gen X voters constituted a larger share of American voters than the Baby Boomer generation. Voters younger than 52 cast 69.6 million votes in the 2016 general election — a slight majority of the 137.5 million total votes cast, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of Census Bureau data.
And that number is something the organizers of the March for Our Lives and many of its attendees are looking to change.
“Politicians, either represent the people or get out,” Cameron Kasky, a Parkland student, said in front of the Capitol to hundreds of thousands of attendees of the Washington rally.
“Stand for us or beware: The voters are coming.”
Some students who traveled to Washington to voice their opinion at #March4OurLives but who cannot vote, urged young Americans who can, to sign up and exercise their rights.
Kimberly Salinas and Elizabeth Peralta were brought illegally to the United States when they were young children, but under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), they are allowed to study and work in the U.S. legally. But, unless they become citizens, they are not allowed to vote.
Having traveled from North Carolina with a group of peers for the march, the two spoke between tears about the importance of young people participating in politics.
“Here, we are allowed to share our voices,” Peralta, who was born in Mexico, told VOA the night before the march, but shrugged her shoulders when pressed about the right to vote.
“It’s better thinking what we can do than what we can’t,” Salinas chimed in quietly.
“There are so many limitations that we face, but there’s a lot of open doors every now and then,” Salinas said. “You’ve got to take advantage of those rather than focus on the downsides of it. And encourage our friends to speak up — the ones who can — speak up for us.”
Please visit our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts for more news about college and university students and issues, thanks!
See all News Updates of the Day
Trump administration opens antisemitism inquiries at 5 colleges, including Columbia and Berkeley
The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.
It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.
In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.
Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.
Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.
"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.
The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.
An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."
House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."
Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.
Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.
The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.
"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."
- By VOA News
STEM, business top subjects for international students
The Times of India breaks down the most popular subjects for international students to study in the U.S.
STEM and business lead the pack. Read the full story here. (January 2025)
- By VOA News
Safety and visa difficulties among misconceptions about US colleges
U.S. News & World report addresses some of the misconceptions about U.S. colleges and universities, including the difficulty of getting a visa.
Read the full story here. (January 2025)
- By VOA News
Work opportunities help draw international students to US schools
US News & World Report details the three top factors in foreign students' decision to study in the U.S. They include research opportunities and the reputation of U.S. degrees. Read the full story here. (December 2024)
- By VOA News
British student talks about her culture shock in Ohio
A British student who did a year abroad at Bowling Green State University in Ohio talks about adjusting to life in America in a TikTok video, Newsweek magazine reports.
Among the biggest surprises? Portion sizes, jaywalking laws and dorm room beds.
Read the full story here. (December 2024)
