We have all seen the pictures, read the headlines, and heard the opinions of our peers (whether we wanted to or not) about the unrest occurring in our nation today.
It’s safe to say our nation may be coming into another pivotal moment in its nearly 239 year history.
One is left to wonder if the summer of 2015 will be like the historical summers of 1967, 1968, and 1969.
Being the history nerd that I am, I’ve watched numerous documentaries about these summers as well as the 1960s in general. It seems as though each piece features an older man or woman who was in college at the time of these events. College age students are often the instigators of change, the ones who force the topic. This was the age group burning their draft cards and marching from Selma to Montgomery.
I now find myself in college as I watch these events unfold in my world. What I saw in documentaries is eerily reminiscent of what is playing out on the nightly news each night.
My classmates, we must realize the time we are living in. Much like our grandparents, we are in the situation to be agents of change.
All I ask of you is that you take some time out of your day to look at these things. Close out of Twitter, mute your GroupMe, and put your phone down to pay attention to your surroundings. You’ll be amazed how the electoral process in Poli Sci, World War II in history, and journalistic practices in J classes relate to what is going on in our nation today. Make the effort to draw connections and learn from them!
One of my professor’s recently stated, How can America protect freedom abroad if it isn’t fully achieved at home? Freedom won’t be achieved at home without educated efforts from young people like us.
I want my generation to leave its imprint on these times through education.
As cliché as it may seem, I’m going to end this post with a Shakespeare quote from Julius Caesar.
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings.”
Photo courtesy of CNN. http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/23/us/gallery/freddie-gray-protest/index.html
Ethan May 
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