Politics- that’s just for adults, right? Teenagers don’t care about politics. They can’t vote, so it doesn’t matter. 
Wrong.
Even though teenagers may not be able to vote, they can still express opinions and learn about the world. Adolescence is when teenagers develop their own opinions. This may mean your opinions are different than what your parents and family think, but that’s okay. A politically educated 18 year old will go much further in life than an uneducated young adult.
I used to not care about politics. I vaguely remember seeing the 2008 presidential election on TV, but I didn’t pay any particular attention to it. I knew that there were a lot of candidates, but I had no idea what they stood for or who I’d want to vote for. My mom made me watch the inauguration, so I complied. I understood that an African-American being elected was a big deal, but I didn’t know anything about the inauguration beyond that.
One day I happened to walk by the TV when my parents were watching a political show. A man with slightly greying hair was talking about reason and sanity. I stopped walking, intrigued. He went on to make a number of jokes and a brown-haired man wearing glasses appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. He wore a green cape and blended into the green screen behind him. I laughed, finding the show funny. When the segment was over and commercials were playing, I asked my parents what the show was called. It was Comedy Central's The Daily Show, and the man with grey hair was Jon Stewart. The second man was Stephen Colbert, who also had a Comedy Central show, The Colbert Report.
I found clips of the show online and became hooked. Stewart made witty, sharp jokes that satirized both Democrats and Republicans. Colbert mocked Republicans by pretending to be one, and both shows were hilarious. In the first clip I watched, they were announcing a rally. The Rally to Restore Sanity And/Or Fear. I immediately knew that I had to go to this event. My parents were uncertain, and up to the day before it took place, they said that we might not go. I remained hopeful, and on the morning of October 31, 2010, we got ready to drive to Washington D.C.
The rally took place on the National Mall. The event wasn’t specifically mocking either side of the political aisle, it was just a call for sanity. Even though I hadn’t paid much attention to politics prior to watching the Daily Show and Colbert Report, I knew that both parties were attacking each other viciously. Republicans and Democrats used soaring rhetoric and horrible attack ads when what Americans really needed (and still need, as this is an ongoing problem) was cooperation and a competent Congress.
Everything was packed at the rally. The subways were packed, the National Mall was packed, even the museums and bathrooms were packed. I couldn’t get a good view of the actual rally and I only caught snippets of what was going on because the nearest speakers were at least fifty-thousand people away, but I didn’t need to see the stage. My favorite thing about the rally wasn’t seeing anyone famous, it was seeing everyone who wasn’t. Hundreds of thousands of people, reasonable people, had signs, costumes, and great attitudes. People were nice to each other, laughed with each other, and made new friends. They weren’t politically extreme and they just wanted politicians to be reasonable too.
Both Republicans and Democrats were at the event, and people of all religions and races were represented. One of my clearest memories of the rally is a “Jump rope with a Muslim” sign. Muslims and Christians and Jews and Atheists were all jumping rope together, and nothing horrible was happening. The world didn’t implode, and no one of any religion was hateful towards anyone of a different religion. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen in my life. It was also when I realized that I’m extremely interested in politics, and that politics is extremely important for people of all ages.
I still watch the Daily Show and Colbert Report every night, two years after I went to the rally. I use the knowledge I gain from watching TV to debate with other students about politics, write Journalism articles, do homework, and stay informed about the world. I have been changed for the better in the years since I first watched my favorite late-night funnymen do a skit. I truly believe that every high schooler should watch The Daily Show and Colbert Report, or at least pay attention to politics, if not to stay informed about their country, than to have a daily dose of informative humor.
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