I don't know anything about politics.

A few weeks ago, I was talking with a friend about my campaign. After she was done sharing her thoughts with me, she finished up by saying, “This is just my opinion, I don’t really know anything about politics so take it as you will.” I hear versions of this idea a lot, and you probably have too, especially given the hectic, roller coaster of an election cycle we all just went through. 

“I don’t know anything about politics.”

“I’m not informed enough to have an opinion.”

“I didn’t go to school for any of that stuff, so I don’t really understand.”

Our country has set up this idea that in order to have a voice in the political conversation and be taken seriously, you must have a certain kind of education, certain work experience, or be over a certain age. Even last week, as some of my students were working on a project, I overheard them saying politicians should have degrees in political science. I’ll always be an advocate for people bettering themselves through education, but I want to be very clear in saying that having a certain degree does not immediately qualify someone to run for office. Politics is not some “other world” where the greatest minds perform rocket science in order to run the country. Politics is just people coming together to talk about their ideas and trying to make the best decisions for everyone. If you’re someone who lives here, works here, pays taxes, sends your kids to our schools, drives on our roads, or is in any way affected by the laws and policies elected or appointed officials make, your voice matters just as much as those in power. In fact, your voice matters even more because you are the ones seeing policy in action. This is why we need more teachers, plumbers, social workers, bartenders, small business owners, servers, and other everyday people in government because they know the strengths and weaknesses of these policies and they know the best ways to fix these problems. 

So, the next time you stop yourself from engaging in a conversation, whether online or in person, or writing to your representatives, or getting involved with local groups advocating for change because you “don’t know anything about politics” remind yourself that you are more than qualified to have a voice in the conversation and a seat at the table. When we speak, change begins.