Taking action, making change

When I see big news, a part of my mind sometimes likes to imagine what it would sound like if the headlines were shouted on a street corner by a turn-of-the-century newsboy. “Extra, extra! Read all about it! Vermont halts official state travel to North Carolina because of anti-LGBT bill! Five women’s national soccer players file wage complaint against U.S. Soccer!”

The most fascinating element of this scenario is that these topics would never have been spoken about one hundred years ago, let alone have been printed in the press. The times have changed and so have our interests. But would so drastic a change exist if strong activists did not?

Activism goes above and beyond normal action. It is often considered unconventional, sometimes extreme. If executed well, activism brings light to important topics that otherwise could go unaddressed. Most importantly, it excites change.

And I am witnessing it in a huge way in my own generation.

Among other cities and states across the country, Vermont has decided to position itself against North Carolina’s recent bill that fails to protect many members of the LGBT community from discrimination. Vermont has banned state-paid travel between the two states. When members of the U.S. women’s national soccer team realized that their male counterparts were being paid more than them, even though the women clinched the World Cup title last summer, five members of the team filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

I am proud to live in a time when prominent people and even entire states will take action when they realize that something that is happening is simply not acceptable in 2016, but it isn’t just the headline-makers who are capable of change. On our own campus, we’ve pledged money through the Fix It with Five initiative to help food insecure families through the Food Bag Project, run by the Burlington Children’s Space, a local non-profit organization. We’ve hosted rallies, marched in parades, and created installations to inform students about and prevent sexual assault. We’ve watched a young woman defend her argument to the administration for a more detailed explanation of which internships will be accepted or denied credit.

Some older generations say that millennials are too young to be successful activists. That our form of “activism” involves little more than making a Facebook post and counting our likes and comments as affirmation of our thoughts. I ask them to take a closer look at us, and at the society we’re being raised in. We may be the first generation to live in a social media bubble, but it is an atmosphere that encourages us to take a stand for what we believe in.

We aren’t complacent because we’re young, in fact, we have more of a voice because of it, and a much bigger microphone. Reluctance to speak up, to take a stand, often hinders our ability to advocate for what we believe in.

But we must look to those of our generation who have placed their fight for a cause above all else. Whether by grabbing a phone, parading a sign, or making a speech, it is time to speak up. Though each activist movement may take a different form, they are working towards making their vision of change a reality, by really making change.

#editorial