family matters

1

ELECTION 2008

Citizen Ki

BY

MELODY WARNICK

T a k e a d v a n t a g e o f t h e e x c i t e m e n t o f t h i s y e a r 's p r e s i d e n t i a l r a c e — a n d t e a c h y o u r

k id s l i f e l o n g l e s s o n s a b o u t c i t i z e n s h i p a n d t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f t h e i r f u t u r e v o t e .

K

yle Corbin has heard

all the talk about

political apathy

among young people:

that teens won’t vote,

that they don’t care about big issues,

that they refuse to get involved. He

just doesn’t believe it.

In 2007, when he was a freshly

minted high school graduate, Corbin,

then 17, was tired of the contentious

political scene in his hometown of

Union, Oregon (pop. 2,000). “I

thought, somebody has to do

something about this. Why not me?”

So he ran for mayor—and won the

election. He’s been so successful at

creating cooperation among leaders

and increasing citizen participation

that he’s planning his next big-

political move—a bid to become a

county commissioner.

Corbin’s story may be unusual, but

he says political awareness among

teens is not. “Kids get a bad rap when

it comes to political apathy. But I

think we’re reaching a point where

young people are more interested in

politics than ever,” he says.

But they don’t have to do it alone.

Parents can make it a family affair,

helping kids learn to use their

political voice, which will make

them feel as if they have the power

to change the world—or at least

their communities. These ideas

will encourage kids to get excited

about the vote.

VOTE TOGETHER

When adults were asked which

experiences instilled a sense of

patriotism in them as children, they

often mentioned seeing their parents

vote, says Myrna Blyth, co-author

of How

to Raise an American

and

director of the Take Your Kids 2 Vote

campaign (

TakeYourKids2Vote.org

).

Hold off going to the polls until you

can bring your kids with you, even

if you have to pull them briefly out

of school. When they see how

important voting is to you, they’re

more likely to do it themselves when

they’re old enough.

LET THEM VOTE

In 2004, more than 4 million

students from elementary, middle,

and high schools across the country

took part in the National Student-

Parent Mock Election, a program

through which kids cast official-

looking ballots at school, or online at

the Web site

NationalMockElection

.org,

a week before the general

ce

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OCTOBER 2008 BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS