When I moved to London a little over a year ago, I had in my mind a huge, vibrant, diverse city full of opportunities , and I was right – to an extent.
London is one of the most diverse places on the planet, with people from all backgrounds and walks of life. But you wouldn’t know this looking only at our political representation and at who actually gets a say in the running of the city.
Too often, democracy remains a privilege of those who are able to afford it, and who can afford enough time, money or an education for their children. There’s no denying that politics can be bureaucratic, exclusive and corrupt. Unfortunately, years of Western democracy have mutated it into a system where things are often decided for us, rather than by us. But I believe there is hope yet.
During the past decades, young people in London were among the demographic who benefited least from political decisions. Housing has become so expensive that young people are forced further and further out of central London. Combined with the rise of tuition fees, lowered maintenance loans and the soaring price of transport, life in London is quite simply becoming unaffordable. And this is only one example – the tip of the iceberg that is the rising political discontent among young Londoners.
“ I believe this generation has the potential to harness that discontent and make changes from the bottom up, creating a democracy that is not a privilege but a right.”
Play our voter advice app at: https://verto.london/ to take power for yourself and your community. Every single player’s contribution will feed into the lobbying that Bite The Ballot will do after the next Mayor is elected to take young Londoners’ views into consideration in major decisions.
Zsofia Paulikovics works in the Campaigns Department with Bite The Ballot
