Government doesn’t necessarily have to be democratic, but you’d think that a democracy would be.
In order for a democracy to be effective, people need to be involved.
This is a popular critique of millennials, that we are not involved in political life.
The problem is that Western democracies do not genuinely invite us to participate.
Western political systems have evolved (or, perhaps, devolved) to the point of reinforcing existing power structures at the expense of others.
In other words, the people with all the power have created a system in which they get to keep all the power.
Rich, white, old men have manipulated democracy to benefit rich, white, old men.
There are, of course, exceptions to prove the rule, and the fact remains that the balance of power is predominantly and disproportionately held by rich, white, old men.
This is true not just in politics but in nearly every aspect of 21st century Western culture.
The richest people in America? Old, white men.
Who runs our news organizations? Old, white men.
Who is the richest demographic? Old, white men.
Millennials are the first generation in modern history who will be less affluent than their parents.
That is mortifying.
Western democracy, economics, and culture have been crafted by people in power in order to benefit them at the expense of future generations.
This generational divide does not even touch upon the seemingly irreparable harm this has done to anyone else who does not identify as a white male.
People in power often spout meaningless epithets about how they want more young people to be involved in politics and greater diversity in social groups.
And yet they maintain the existing structures that are specifically designed to keep power concentrated among those who already hold it.
The problem isn’t that millennials, women, and people of colour don’t want to be involved; the problem is that social barriers have been specifically constructed to keep us on the periphery.
And we’re fed up.
In my next post, I will be talking about how some of the political issues most important to the majority of people are being ignored.