College Students Show Wavering Trust in Government
St. Petersburg — With the addition of the Capitol riot to a long list of recent political protests, University of South Florida students haven’t gained more trust in a divided government.
The Capitol riot was yet another example of just how unsatisfied many of the public are with the current state of politics. Unrest seems to be a common occurrence lately on both sides of the political aisle, with a number of protests ending with the destruction of both private and public property. And today’s young college students, who will eventually inherit this political system, have been paying attention to the effects of the division. They have expressed concern for the direction politics has been heading.
“Bipartisanship is sort of ruining any sort of collaboration or progress that we can make,” said Sophie Ojdanic.
Ojdanic is a 19-year-old senior at the University of South Florida. She said she believes the two-party system has been hindering the nation more that helping it. And she said she is optimistic that eventually politics will move past it though it may take time. She said it would be best for everyone to identify as a “normal” person, rather than Democrat or Republican.
According to a Pew Research Center survey in September of last year, trust in the federal government has remained under 30 percent through the last three presidencies. The reasons reported for the distrust vary from one person to the next and cover a wide variety of topics as well. Ideas on how to return trust in the political system are equally varied.
“You’d have to come forth with as much transparency as the government could give,” said Ojdanic.
Government transparency is only valuable when the information being shared is factual. The misinformation that is shared by government officials can be viewed as playing a key role in the distrust by the public. There are those that believe it is standard practice for politicians to speak one thing and do another, which further undermines credibility.
“I have never had trust in the government simply because I know that all they speak are lies,” said Lauren Wood.
Wood, a 21-year-old junior at the University of South Florida, said she feels as though tensions surrounding the government and politics are running extremely high. She expressed that she believes government leadership in the past made it a habit to dismiss the concerns of the people, and that type of behavior has led to much of the unrest of the past several years.
“I feel like they don’t do anything about it until after the damage is done,” said Wood.
Even though Wood has deep concerns about the effectiveness of the government, she said she remains optimistic rather than fearful for the future. She said she still has faith that the people of the nation will move in the right direction, even if the government doesn’t.
“I think I’m definitely having more trust in the people who are standing up and fighting back, rather than the government who’s trying to,” said Wood.
Wood was referring to the various activist groups rallying for their individual causes. She said she feels like those people are the ones truly accomplishing things.
