Volume XXXIX Issue 2 01 Nov 2016
theArrow 100 NORTH LAKEVIEW CANYON RD WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA 91362
Dear Future President,
GRAPH
IC BY M
ILLA WU
This letter represents the voice of our generation, the generation now referred to as Generation Z. There are currently 23 million of us in the United States, 7% of the total population. For the next couple of years, you will be the one we turn to in times of inevitable crises, the figure we rely on to rally the nation. We hope you regard that responsibility as highly as we regard your position as President of the United States. We are the generation that grew up under the nation’s first African American president, Barack Obama. We have never known a time when there has not been war overseas or the threat of war. We can’t really recount life without the Internet. Growing up under the lens of social media has conditioned us to always have a watchful eye turned towards the world surrounding us. We have been called the hardworking and ambitious generation. Every move we make takes the future into account. The world will learn about you and your time in office in history books. Whether your legacy is good or bad is up to you and will depend on the actions you make in the following years. There are prominent issues in our country that we all hope you will address and change for the better. Police brutality towards African American citizens will not go away unless you make an effort to diffuse it. One hundred and ninety–four African Americans have died in 2016 at the hands of police, according to a project by The Guardian that keeps track of the police killings in the nation. These victims are people such as Alton Sterling of Louisiana, Terence Crutcher of Oklahoma and Keith Lamar Scott of North Carolina. The protests and the rallies will not stop if lives like these continue to be disregarded. Social media is spreading the incidents like wildfire, creating a split in society. Many fair and good policemen are now in danger of losing their lives on account of false assumptions based on the reputation of some police who made rash, unethical decisions, while many innocent citizens continue to live in constant fear and feel threatened because of the color of their skin. We hope you can help to instill peace back into the masses by making changes, since you have been the one awarded with that power. Recently, gun regulation debates are becoming more and more feverish with every passing minute. In 2016 alone it has been proven that guns have managed to fall into the hands of the wrong people. Between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31, 2016, there have been 399 shootings in the United States, according to Mass Shooting Tracker. The Pulse Nightclub Massacre, the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, ended the lives of 50 innocent people and injured 53 others at the hands of Omar Mateen, a 29–year–old American citizen who had publically pledged allegiance to ISIS and asserted his hatred for members of the LGBTQ community on social media. The problems don’t just lie in our country; they have spread throughout the globe. Terrorism continues to strike all around the world. Who or what is stopping anyone from making our nation the next victim? Whose lives are going to be lost next? As of Oct. 31, 2016, there have been 1,487 terrorism attacks worldwide, resulting in 13,162 fatalities, according to Esri.com. Every day holds the threat of a potential attack on innocent people. We need you to take a step in relieving the nation of some of this weight by focusing on America’s global relationships and being the strong figure we know we can lean on. An issue that personally affects our generation is excessive student debt. Students are struggling to afford a college education that is practically mandatory for any decent–paying job. The average 2016 college graduate enters the “real world” with approximately $37,000 in debt from student loans that loom like a dark rain cloud over his or her head. A fear has been instilled in the younger generation about student debt, resulting in a rush to earn scholarships through sports and outstanding grades. Student anxiety levels have skyrocketed. Members of this generation need a program that allows them to be successful in the future without sacrificing their mental health and teenage years for the sake of a couple thousand dollars in scholarships. This is the perfect opportunity for you to unite our nation not only in spirit, but in values. Our nation is divided, more so than ever before. The new era is ushering in generations with strong beliefs and important issues that continue to go unresolved. We ask you to be open to listening to the demands of the people, not just those of the government and big businesses, and not continue to ignore the people’s needs and only do what is best for the elite population. If you give the people a voice and recognize their needs, you will win their support. We know that the position you’re in is one of the most challenging in the world. It isn’t easy to guide a diverse nation of 325 million people towards a common goal and to bring us all together. But you have been elected as our voice, our leader, our representative in the world. Please don’t let us down. Sincerely, Lo Yarnall, representing The Future of the United States
Compiled by Helen Shi and Amanda Yao