activism

Grassroots campaigns have proven instrumental in bringing about political, social or environmental change; you've got to start somewhere-might as well start here.

Unpaid Parking Meters
The fifth gunshot was still ringing in the hallway rafters when they latched the stall door shut behind them. He’d never been in the girl's bathroom at the high school before and she hadn't seen him since his family stopped coming to church. It wasn’t uncommon to go months without seeing someone at their school given the number of students that attended. He was surprised that she wasn’t crying. He remembered the day at church when he saw her crying in the pew across from his. He had tried not to stare that day but he couldn’t help but notice the way she tried so hard to stifle her tears and the way her parents remained straight-faced the entire mass.
By Katie Healy8 years ago in The Swamp
Revolution
Today, we live in a world filled with deception, deceit, and lies. The United States government continues to perpetrate gross injustices on the public. Sadly, though, there really hasn't been a unified effort to make our government accountable for all the travesties they have imposed on the American citizen. Remember the 99 percent movement of just a few years ago? That protest never got organized, for if it did, maybe, just maybe, things would be a little bit better today. It is the public, though, that have been so indoctrinated in accepting whatever the government mandates. There have been countless numbers of unfunded mandates imposed on the American citizen, all of which have put financial strains on practically every American. That is just part of the issues facing us today.
By Dr. Williams8 years ago in The Swamp
My Experience in the National School Walkout
Even though most online writers are adults, I'm one of the few teenage online writers. Yeah, I know. I'm just a high school student who usually writes about movies and theories. But every once in a while, I write a political article, and today, it's time for another politics article.
By Jonathan Sim8 years ago in The Swamp
It’s Time for an Honest Conversation About the Second Amendment
I don’t think I am one to talk. I lived in a house where mom and dad despised guns, to this day. Yet, I went the other day shooting at a range here in Charleston, and they seemed to be happy for me that I got to have some fun trying something I’ve never done. How could that be possible? Now the real question stands, can we have a healthy talk about what’s tearing our country apart?
By Tristan DeJesus8 years ago in The Swamp
How to Establish a Health Care Rights Protest
Health care is a hot topic in this time period. We have to start mobilizing health care protests. As in, we do not want them to put in the pre-existing condition clause again, which is flat out denying people coverage if they have so much as a yeast infection. The state of healthcare in the United States is appalling. I’m lucky I live in California. I have fabulous doctors whose orders I follow well. I’ve been alive for 37 years and out of the hospital since 1991.
By Iria Vasquez-Paez8 years ago in The Swamp
Sharks on the Brink
Most people wouldn't think of sharks unless reminded by Shark Week on Discovery Channel or reading the rare news of a shark attack. People are scared of sharks and often want to put them out of their mind—especially when vacationing on beaches—but they risk extinction if we don't think of them. Recently, more people have become aware of the shark finning industry and realizing the repercussions that this practice has had on the global populations of sharks.
By Cameron Ellis8 years ago in The Swamp
The Double Standard in America
Yes, believe it or not, there are double standards in America. We live with it everyday, yet we do nothing about it. We have cops killing unarmed African Americans, which we turn a blind eye to. We then have children murdering other children in school hallways. We get in an uproar then, but when it comes time to do something, we cling to our firearms for fear that some government official is going to walk in our house and take them out of our hands. When a person of Middle Eastern descent does something wrong, we automatically claim terrorism. When a white male does it, it's the cry of a troubled young man. Where do we find the happy medium?
By James Howell8 years ago in The Swamp
The Black Snake
This is a purely fictional story: Matoaka sat and stared up in childish wonder. Staring up at her grandmother in the warmly colored tee-pee, she eagerly listened to her retelling of the ancient prophecy. Her whimsical hand gestures and imaginative tone of voice were enough to transport Matoaka’s young and impressionable mind to the scenes her grandmother was describing.
By Bella V.8 years ago in The Swamp
Dear Reader: Imagine the Fear
Dear Reader, This piece involves mental imagery and imagination. Not the imagination that we are shaped to have, but an imagination that is full of grief and darkness. Unless you were homeschooled as a child, I assume most people reading this have experienced high school. Whether you were the “nerd,” “jock,” or “burn out,” you were part of a community. This community was invented to help shape young children into young adults. With structured schedules the children, of all different identities, were blended together.
By Risa M8 years ago in The Swamp
How You Should Prepare for Saturday's March
The tension in the political atmosphere is palpable, you could stick a fork in it. But, in spite of the growing rift between right and left, millions of people will gather on March 24, all over the country, and possibly the world, to draw attention to gun violence in American schools and communities and to honor the young people lost every day to it. We will march side by side, hand in hand, to tell our congressmen and president #Enough is Enough.
By Luna Love8 years ago in The Swamp
The Fight for Free Speech
Fellow Millennials, It’s come to my attention that whether you’re a die-hard Sanders socialism supporter, a defender of Clinton’s Liberal allegiances, or a rider on the Republican Trump train, we all want to have our opinions heard (and—optimistically—respected). However, if we intend to preserve any value we hold in our FIRST amendment rights, we have to foremost be open (although maybe not always accepting) to all other viewpoints that oppose our own in order to protect it. If you’re facing challenges on your campus, I’ve included a few tips below that I’ve learned from being involved in the battle for freedom of ideas, opinions, and any other form of speech at my university, Cal State Fullerton.
By Hannah Reams8 years ago in The Swamp
Protest for the Rights of the Homeless
Homelessness is a growing problem within The United States of America. It almost seems like there is an underground war between the state and the homeless. As the problem ever so slowly grows, large cities are making life more and more difficult. When will our society have programs that give desperate people options and hope?
By Jordan Martinez8 years ago in The Swamp