1,000 National Park Service workers laid off. 3,400 Forest Service workers let go. 100+ environmental laws rolled back.
How can you vote for a man who’s all about loving America when he is actively trying to tear it apart and burn it down? How far can the administration go before we have no earth left?
I’ve never been more scared for the future of our country. It feels like the future that I once planned is slipping further and further away. There’s always been a part in the back of my mind thinking about going to college for something environmental—being a kid born in Colorado, it would be a disservice not to. But just three months into Trump’s presidency, it feels like a part of my life is just not possible anymore.
From a young age, I was always outside, whether it was on family hikes or my preschool teachers making us garden. One of the first things I was taught is to care for the environment: the common cliches like ‘reduce, reuse, recycle,’ or ‘leave it how you found it.’ These concepts were instilled in me as soon as I was able to grasp them. As a five-year-old, I understood these concepts. So I don’t understand how our president doesn’t.
Next year, I will be in my most important period of high school, striving to perform the best I possibly can academically to seal my future. The future that was always in the back of my mind now might be cut entirely.
How can I dream of the earth being sustainable when my future job won’t be? In the past three months, thousands of environmental workers have been laid off, hundreds of laws have been rolled back, and no one seems to care.
The worst part about all this is that the majority of Americans voted for this man. A man who warned us of his plans to take every natural resource this country has to offer. A man who is actively tearing our landscape apart. A man who is more concerned about the oil in our land than the people upon it.
As someone born in one of the most beautiful states, I can never understand why people don’t care about the environment. What do they think is gonna happen when there is no oil left to drill for? No clean air left to breathe? How can there be a president of the United States when there is no United States left?
Politicians need to think more long-term. They need to value our environmental workers because without them, the land will be destroyed beyond repair. We have the power to leave the earth better than we found it. The only way to do this is to elect officials who truly care about all aspects of our country.
While we can’t do much about our current president, now we need to think on a smaller scale. The power is in your state government’s hands. Do your research on state official candidates. Research propositions and amendments. Most importantly, vote in every election you can. The power is in your hands.
Your vote in state and primary elections is more crucial now than ever. Your vote could dictate the entire future of this country. Take your time filling out your ballots and find the candidate that best aligns with the issues you care about. Look into each and every proposition and think about its impact long term. Follow the news and truly understand the issues we are faced with.
Americans need to take charge of the future. We can’t sit back and watch politicians destroy the earth for the next generation. The next time we are faced with similar presidential candidates, choose a leader who will think about the longevity of our country, not just the resources it holds.