Young Americans who are significantly impacted by political decisions are facing a future full of both obstacles and opportunities.
Gen Z guests on GBH News’ Politics IRL said their trust in government is tied to their hopes for a successful future.
“I’m personally grieving my future and at the same time angry about it, because I feel like there’s so much division in the country right now. There’s no shaking of the hands from the aisle and across party lines,” said Leandena Dankese, a 26-year-old independent.
Dankese said she feels that neither Republicans nor Democrats will come together to make policies that help everyday people.
Just over 64% of young Americans age 18-29 reported having more fear than hope about the future of democracy, according to a recent Harvard Youth Poll.
That polling showed young people blamed politicians, the media, money in politics and racism as top issues impacting the state of politics and society today.
Joey Pisani, a 19-year-old Democrat, said he’s lost hope for the future because of actions from President Donald Trump, such as slashing of federal programs, but he’s not giving up.
“When I see people out there fighting, that does actually give me hope. It gives me hope that there are still people out here who care about our democracy,” Pisani said, noting politicians like U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley and New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.
But 23-year-old Republican Artem Talibov, who voted for Trump, said despite rocky times he’s happy to see like-minded young voters like him supporting the president.
“Times are tumultuous, yes, things are uncertain and unstable. But at the same time, like in times of chaos, opportunity is always bred,” Talibov said.
Watch the full conversation by clicking the video at the top of the page.
In the Politics IRL video series, we give young voters the opportunity to sit face to face and talk openly about the topics that motivated them to vote — or not — in the 2024 general election. They choose what to discuss. We get to see their politics — in real life. If you are a young voter, or know of one who may want to participate in our series, please connect with lead producer Alexi Cohan via email at alexi_cohan@wgbh.org.
