The
youth vote was instrumental in the 2008 Presidential Election.
According to U.S. News and World Report, over 61 percent of people from
the age of 18-29 voted for Barack Obama. Rolling out recently caught up
with several Atlanta-area college students who discussed their feelings
on Obama’s victory.-a.r.
Danielle Underwood
Oakland
Clark Atlanta University
Psychology
“At
first I was in shock. I really held my emotions and I was very happy. I
thought about myself and doing better in school. Sometimes I give up
too easy on things I really don’t understand. I thought about the
people who can’t afford to go to school and people who are in
jail. A lot of people wish that they had the opportunity to go school.
Obama has inspired me to try and not give up.”
Janequa Hill
Lincolnton, Ga.
Clark Atlanta University
Business Administration
“I
was overjoyed. It was an inspirational moment for me. I feel more
secure in my future now. Barack Obama touched on better health care and
education for all Americans. That’s important for parents who
don’t have healthcare and who can’t afford to send their
kids to school. I’m the first person in my family who has
attended college. Now I think my little brother will be able to follow
in my footsteps and go to college. I’m going to make more changes
as far as staying in school and changing my lifestyle. I’m
motivated to work even harder. I have raised my standards from school
to the men I date. Obama has raised the bar.”
Jason Smith
Morehouse
Miami, Fla.
Electrical Engineering
My
feeling is that it was a great moment. During the debates, Obama proved
that he was the better candidate. He talked about the tax cuts for 95
percent of the US population. The one thing that drew me to him was the
speech that he gave on race. That inspired me to support him. It was an
emotional experience. But there are a lot of changes that still need to
be made. With Obama reaching this level, I feel that I can go even
higher. He set a benchmark for all people. I think that we all can
achieve no matter what the conditions are.
Shenita Ware
Clark Atlanta University
Psychology
“I
was so happy that I came to tears. I’m going to think more about
the good and not hold grudges against people. I also need to study
harder for class. It’s an achievement to have a black president.
I feel like if he can do something big, than I can do it too. I can
study and make my grades better so that I can do something great in
life.”
Ernest Brown
Clark Atlanta University
Music
Philadelphia, Penn.
“It
felt like we have been able to break barriers. I was vindicated.
I’m going to get involved more in my community. I’m going
to learn more about the government and politics and study what’s
happening around the world.”
