I turned 18 on the 15th of March 2019. The thought of turning 18 had me over the moon with excitement. The amount of responsibility that came with it, but also the number of benefits of turning 18 was beyond amazing. The fact that I could now drive, the fact that I now had a later curfew, the fact that I would be finishing school this year, but above all that, it was the fact that I could now utilize my right to vote.
Being a first-time voter and a black female in South Africa, I found that I am actually within a small group of people who are able to vote and who are actually willing to vote. I realized this during the week leading up to voting day, the teachers were asking who was going to vote, and in every class I was in, there were probably 2 or 3 people that raised their hands. This being compared to the 15-20 people who wanted to vote but were too young to was astonishing to see. I was also shocked to find out that my cousin and brother refuse to vote, the reason being that they truly believe that all the votes are rigged and, I quote, “we already know who is going to win in any case”. I also found that those who are able to vote are the ones who complain the most about what goes on in the country, but when given the chance to change, they refuse to do so.
The youth of South Africa was turning their back on elective politics at the fastest rate seen in the past two decades. The number of young South Africans that were registered to vote this year had dropped to its lowest since 1999 (it has dropped by over 300k since 1999). This issue is a massive problem as it gives the older generation, the minority, more power, and gives the younger generation, the majority, less power. The older generation, therefore, decides our future, while we sit back and complain when we should take our future back instead.
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1994 was a significant time for South Africa as it was the first time that everybody in the country was able to vote, no matter the ethnicity, unlike previous years when only white people were only vote. At the time the biggest group voting was black people, now the biggest group is the youth, at the time the black people were the group fighting for their right to vote and once it was received every person that was eligible to vote did, now the youth are the ones fighting for their right to have to say in the country and for their voices to be heard, meanwhile they can’t even take time out of their day to simply tick a box and possibly change their country for the better.
The problem has been caused by the youth of South Africa, as well as the adults. It is the mindset that we have that there is no point because we already know what is going to happen or who is going to win. This mindset is encouraged by our elders as they, understandably so, still have mindsets of the past which therefore influence us. The problem continues to prevail because when we complain about what occurs in our country, no one stops us and explains to us that it’s our own fault as we are the majority and the ones who can lead the way for a change, instead we are shut down and told that we should focus on our studies but the people who affect our studies are the adults who those who choose the path of our future, therefore, meaning it is a vicious cycle, but the good news is that there is something that can be done about this.
I truly believe that voting is a superpower. Of course, it isn’t mind reading, abnormal strength, or even water manipulation, but it does determine the future of the country in which I live, and I think that that is a pretty great superpower. I also have the ability to speak in front of people with no fear so I could also educate the youth, a crowd of people I can relate to (therefore, another superpower), and tell them the importance of voting and what good it does for the country and our own future.
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