Leavenworth Youth Rise Up

Young people from Leavenworth are taking action and making their voices heard in an unprecedented movement of youth engagement in North Central Washington. Leavenworth young people are leading the way by organizing protests like the Climate March on September 25, organizing youth-run candidate forums, and organizing for regional political campaigns.

 

Aidan Ringel, one of the organizers for the September 25 Climate March, explained why the rise in youth political participation is important. “Young people are the future and it's important for us to get our voice out there because politics is overwhelmingly older people and that isn't sustainable,” he said.

 

Ringel first got involved in activism while participating in climate change protests during his exchange year in Germany, and he has tried to carry that enthusiasm back to Leavenworth. Now Ringel is part of the Sustainability Club at Cascade High school and is a Youth Organizer for the Future of the 12th, a group of young people who are organizing for Adrianne Moore’s campaign for State Representative in the 12th District.

 

The Future of the 12th group of Youth Organizers has over forty active members from around the 12th District, spanning everywhere from Winthrop to Manson. Some organizers, like 14 year old Isabel Menna, will not yet be old enough to vote in November. Others, such as Stella Johnson, will be voting for the first time in the November 3 election.

 

Johnson helped found the Cascade High School Sustainability Club and co-organized the march on September 25. She wishes climate change was not a political issue.

 

“We offered the invitation to both Keith Goehner and Adrianne Moore [the two candidates for District 12 State Representative] to speak at our Climate March and Adrianne was the one who took the time to come out and show us her support.” Johnson explains. “That’s why so many young people support her.”

 

Other Leavenworth young people are working to increase voter turnout among their peers through the newly formed non-partisan organization, NCW Young Voters.

 

Youth voter turnout has historically been low, with only 35% of registered voters age 18-30 turning out in 2018 according to voter data. Common reasons young people do not send in their ballots are a lack of information on how to register, not having access to information on candidates, and feeling like their votes do not matter.

 

NCW Young Voters is addressing those barriers by running voter education campaigns and organizing youth-moderated candidate forums where young people can ask questions directly to the candidates running to represent them, including Goehner and Moore as well as the candidates for Washington Secretary of State, Gael Tarleton and Kim Wyman; and the candidates for Chelan County Commissioner, Dale England and Tiffany Gering.

 

Activate Leavenworth has continued organizing as well. The group formed after the Black Lives Matter March of Solidarity on June 5th that garnered a turnout of 1300 community members. Their most recent initiative was community support for the Cold Spring Canyon/Pearl Hills Fire-- the group collected donations from Leavenworth and drove them to Brewster and Bridgeport.

 

Ringel’s advice for other young people: “Change starts in the streets but it is finished in Olympia or Washington, D.C. Find a candidate running at any level and volunteer for their campaign. You can feel good not only because you helped get them elected but they will pass legislation that creates change that benefits causes you care about.”

 

The September 25 Climate March was organized by Stella Johnson (12th grade CHS), Aidan Ringel (12th grade CHS), Heather Hayes (12th grade Wenatchee HS), Andreas Broxson (12th grade Wenatchee HS). Additional speakers included Allison (Allie) Ward (6th grade IRMS), Molly Renner- Singer (9th grade CHS), Braden Dilly (20 year old from Wenatchee), Rory Swoboda (12th grade CHS), Chelsea Murphy (Leavenworth community member), and Adrianne Moore (Candidate for Washington State Representative for District 12).