After being a U.S. citizen since birth, it would make sense to assume that I have had ample experience in observing how to hold the government accountable, however the reality is that this is not the case.  For almost all of my life, I have been educated and raised in government-run public schools in northern Virginia, one of the best-funded areas in the country.  This gives me a limited view of state government, given that the majority of state government-run institutions in the United States don’t have the same funding for infrastructure as Fairfax County, especially in rural areas.  Although I was fortunate to have quality public schooling, it wouldn’t be far off to assume that most individuals growing up do not have effective ways to hold any level of government accountable around the country. If we disagree with how money is spent in public schools how could challenge it?  Boycotting or staging protests are not realistic or effective options to a 15 year old high schooler, and appeals to major media outlets in all likelihood are a long shot.   Regardless of my opinions of public school, I had essentially no way of holding the government accountable until age 18 when I gained the right to vote, which does not guarantee much political efficacy.

To nobody’s surprise, the fact of the matter is that holding the government accountable is a job for adults.  Young adults can help in various ways, but the vision, money and political clout typically is left to the older and more experienced.  The Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s are a perfect example of this.  The Little Rock Nine were all young adults fighting against Arkansas’ segregated school system, however no political traction was gained until media coverage led to the NAACP’s involvement: an organization with vision, money and political clout.  Individuals such as Thurgood Marshall or Martin Luther King Jr. had the education and leadership skills to confront the U.S. government and create change, and the Nine rely on them.  Protests staged by college students or disgruntled teenagers almost never gain headway unless an influential organization or media group intervenes; otherwise  the result is an embarrassing repeat of the Occupy Wall Street movement or Ferguson riots, which led to no major government reform.