Dear New Leaders of this Country,

If there has ever been a time so desperate for change, it is now. The country we live in is a fleeting shadow of the supposed American dream so widely spoken of. There are swarms of people in this country who are persecuted, discriminated against, hated, and mistreated.

Whether it is the LGBTQ+ community, minorities, the lower class, or a mix of them all, there are people who suffer daily. On the other end of this spectrum, there is the 1%. The top of the top, the pinnacle of the social class. The people who thrive off of this country’s many institutions that are made to exclusively benefit them. The billionaires who have made a trillion dollars during a pandemic when there are people living off unemployment checks. These many inequalities are despicable.

The foundations of this nation are made to benefit the rich, white man and no one else. There must be actions put in place to penalize egregious and obvious examples of inequality. Tax the rich and do not allow such generous breaks, fight against discrimination by race, color, or sexual orientation and give these groups more rights. Reform the police massively and turn them away from being nothing more than a hyper-militarized security force full of people who barely have months of training.  

 There also comes the subject of environmental protection. Clean, alternative energy sources are achievable but there are those who, in the face of scientific facts, will refute global warming and greenhouse gases. The world is rapidly decaying, and it is being left to the younger generations barely reaching adulthood to fix it. This is not only wildly selfish and irresponsible, but it is incredibly unfair as well.  

 Another irresponsibility is the ludicrous amount of government spending goes into the military. The US military budget is 665 billion dollars as of 2020. That money can go to so many different places besides our incredibly overdeveloped military. The largest air force in the world is the US air force and together the US Navy and US Marine Corps would be the second largest. And there is absolutely no need for that statistic. The failing education system would thrive so greatly with some of that money.  

This country is often called the greatest country on Earth. But we do not act like it. Frankly, we never have. I want to be able to wake up in the morning and look forward to my days. Not live in fear of what cataclysmic event will come next. I know that change will not happen in a day or even a year, but there is much that can be done in 4. This upcoming generation is pleading for a fighting chance and that chance can be given but it must be swift. The clock is ticking and there is not much time left.  

The time for action was yesterday. Now it is time to catch up.  

  Sincerely,  

An angry young person