After spending over three years working in federal politics, I am no longer convinced that our political system advocates for the needs of the people it is supposed to serve.
It took some time for me to come to terms with this idea, and a whole lot more soul-searching before I decided it was something I wanted to talk about publicly. But I feel that we are at a unique time where an entire generation feels it has lost its voice, and I can no longer be silent.
I, like many disaffected under-40 Canadians, faced Election 2019 with a stark choice: vote for a party/leader that does not represent my values or don’t vote at all. What a sad state of affairs when the largest generation of working-age Canadians feels that their own political parties do not represent their reality.
The problem is that political parties no longer run on what they believe to be right – they run on what they believe will help them win.
Such a policy leads us to a place of moral and political morass where good policy is defined by retweets, likes, and polling numbers.
By trying to appeal to the lowest common denominator, Canada’s political parties have completely shut out young Canadians.
We have no voice.
And we are tired of not being heard.
Next post I will share one of the tactics politicians use to create wedge issues – issues that divide us rather than bring us together.