Future Voters Speak! Voices and Pictures from NAC's 2020 Youth Voting Poster Contest

What does voting mean to you? Some of us know why we vote the way we do, what policies we support, and where our polling place is. But what about that deeper question?

This Fall, ahead of an historic US national election, we asked kids and teens (grades K-12) in our allied communities what voting means to them, their families, and their communities. Their answers, and the art they created to share their voices, reflect an understanding of civic duty that transcends language, culture, and state lines. While none of our participants is of voting age, they all effectively demonstrate the civic leadership needed to engage their communities.

"My 2020 vote is for a better future and for a better school education. For my community. For my rights. For the family. For a better education....We vote 2020. Let's all vote. Because it is a right for adults. In person, by mail, let's use our voice." (trans. Emma Sullivan)

The variety of locations where the kids are from, and the languages in which they shared their thoughts, show the diversity in our communities, and in the country as a whole. But none of those differences defined the posters. In English and in Spanish, and all across the DMV area, kids used creativity and civic knowledge to share the importance and significance of voting to them.

Public Kinship is born of community advocacy just like this -- lifting up the voices of all generations, hearing the steps that neighbors can take to foster growth and unity, advocating together for change. You see here the next generation of leaders. Listen to them, learn from them, lead with them.