Young People In Action
Generation Y ... More Like Y Get Involved?
Story by Kendall Fields
erry Graham sits at a small table at Espresso
Roma at the edge of the UO campus with
his brown dreadlocks pulled back into a
frizzy ponytail. The 23-year-old scribbles
in his notebook as he sips coffee out of a
clear mug — all pretty normal for a college
student on a gray fall afternoon.
You could say that Graham is just another young hippie
wannabe who probably thinks peace and freedom are
achieved by smoking a lot of pot. What more could he be
doing with his life? He’s only 23; he doesn’t care about
politics or the community. He’s too young.
But if you thought all of that, you’d be terribly wrong.
Don’t be so quick to judge this 23-year-old. He isn’t
disinterested or uninvolved. Graham is one of the few young
people in Eugene who is set on improving the community
through his involvement with the Occupy movement. He
was the brains behind the Occupy Eugene’s Expression
Center, and was arrested at the Nov. 17 bank protest.
But, come on, what can a naïve 20-something really do?
“Don’t forget 2008 and the strong youth involvement
that elected Obama,” UO graduate student Graham says.
Historically, younger generations paved the way for
change through protests such as those in the ‘60s and ’70s.
So it really doesn’t matter if you are 18 — young people
can make a difference.
P
Today it seems like the majority of young people have
forgotten. Eugene’s younger generations don’t think they can
make a difference, at least when they are so inexperienced.
They are not involved in politics or civic engagement and
are deemed “apathetic” by older generations because they
really aren’t interested in the issues of contemporary politics
or they are unaware of them and do not think they have the
ability to infl uence political change or better the community
— and those who are involved only stay for a while. But
there are some exceptions.
What’s with all the apathy?
So, why aren’t more young people involved in civic
engagement in Eugene? Most adults would say it’s because
the youth don’t care and have a general disregard or lack of
respect for the community.
According to statistics from Young Democrats of
America (YDA), Generation Y rivals the Baby Boomers in
size and by 2015 will make up one-third of the electorate.
In 2006, voters aged 18-29 made up 21 percent of the
electorate, with 39 percent identifying themselves as non-
white, according to YDA.
In general, young people are not actively involved
in politics or even in community improvement efforts
because, as Graham says, they just don’t see how it applies
to them. Graham adds that he thinks the apathy stems
from people being indifferent to activism because it is
so common in Eugene. “They think ‘Oh, it’s just another
group of protesters’ and walk away.”
UO post-graduate student and recently elected Interfrater-
nity Council President Jeff Rodgers says one reason young
people, particularly college students, may engage in civic ef-
forts for only a brief time is because they come to school to
get their diploma, and some are paying a lot of money to do
it. “They are just here to get what they paid for,” he explains.
But The Bus Project Executive Director Caitlin Baggot
knows that young people can make a difference. Baggot
started out as a volunteer at the Bus in 2002 when she
was 24. The Bus Project, which is based in Portland, is a
statewide organization that aims to engage young people
in a larger set of issues — from recruiting voters to turning
good ideas into laws.
Thirty-eight-year-old Portland mayoral candidate and
current state representative Jefferson Smith founded the
Bus Project to promote youth involvement and provide a
platform to disseminate the voices and beliefs of young
Oregonians. The Bus Project was launched to fame when
it came out with shirts during the 2008 elections that read
“VOTE, F*CKER.” This declaration was a response
to a shirt marketed by the popular clothing store Urban
Outfi tters that read “Voting Is For Old People.”
Photo by Trask Bedortha
Perry Graham at
Occupy Eugene
10 JANUARY 5, 2012
EUGENE WEEKLY
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