September 11, 2020 by Arielle Silver-Willner
During my first year of college, I registered to vote at a picnic table in front of the Student Center. The student running the event, a volunteer for the Bernie Sanders campaign, shared my excitement about voting in our first-ever election for a candidate that we “actually liked.” I filled out the registration form carefully, verified that I would be 18 before the 2016 Democratic primary, and slipped the paper into an official-looking box.
I grew up in New York, but had decided to register locally in Connecticut so that I could vote in person. I envisioned myself as a “civically engaged youth,” doing my part to push our country further toward justice.