Washington DC youth are terrified by Trump’s takeover. Most didn’t vote.
Making their voices not count
Jeffrey Denny
Angry progressive youth show up proudly among the Washington protestors fighting Reich Chancellor Donald Trump’s military conquest to win what British King George III couldn’t in the War of 1812.
As Trump metaphorically burns America’s capital, passionate Washington youth are expressing their powerful voice by chanting, “Free DC!” “Wake Up America!” “ICE Go Home!” and “FUCK Trump!”
Some protestors are taking a break from protesting about Gaza, Ukraine, climate, billionaires, guns, Dobbs, BLM, LGBTQ, student loans, or other issues that professional advocacy orgs raise money for salaries to organize and rally for or against.
Some protests are intersectionally inclusive of many progressive issues, yet somehow overlook the unspeakable humanitarian horrors in Sudan.
Even more confusing, some are denouncing DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Black single mom, for “capitulating” to Trump instead of fighting his advances, even calling her Neville Chamberlain. As if she’s an old white British colonizer who appeased Hitler’s conquest of Europe.
They say she surrendered our city to Trump. She bowed to federal takeover. She sold us out. She didn’t defend our rights — she signed them away. That’s not just weakness — that’s betrayal. She abandoned her duty to defend DC and joined Trump in stripping us of self-governance. She didn’t fight for the people of Washington, DC.
So fulminated a wealthy white mayoral opponent, echoing and pandering to NextDoor progressive chicken hawks who’ve never been in the arena but comfortably criticize fighters like Bowser who are.
This is not just MAGA-stupid for privileged white liberal college grads to declare. It’s ugly on all counts. And curiously lacking any understanding that any DC mayor is legally powerless to stop Trump. Bowser is Batman, trying to save the city while shackled by haters from left to right. While raising her adopted child.
Ok, fine. Let’s pat the poor young privileged protester bunnies. The poor dears don’t know any better.
They’re dealing with, and understandably acting out, more stress and anxiety than any generation in American history, thanks to COVID, climate, college and housing costs, and the worst job market ever.
Also, science says under-25 brains aren’t fully formed. So it’s hurtful to expect them to act rationally like adults, even if they call adults stupid.
It’s a human rite of passage for youth to attack authority — often ridiculously — since Gilgamesh defied the Uruk elders 4,000 years ago to cultivate his agency in pursuit of glory. (The elders wound up bailing him out.)
But since DC’s youth are so passionate about defending democracy, and voting is the first duty of democracy, it’s fair to ask: How did they vote?
Specifically, where was the youth vote when the mayor and Trump were up for reelection?
You know the answer.
In 2024, while DC turned out big — over 70% — for Kamala Harris to beat Trump, only 32% of 18–24 voters did.
In 2022, when Mayor Bowser was elected to her third term amid high approval ratings, including fighting crime against social justice activist-captured white savior DC Council members, DC turnout edged over 40%.
Midterm election turnout is always low. But for the nation’s capital, the center of American democracy, 40% is sad compared to the 52% national turnout.
DC turnout was even more tragic for the 18–29 cohort. Only 23% bothered to vote — lower than any age group — while their parents and grandparents voted at 40% to over 60%.
Cue the usual patronizing greatest hits that turn explaining into excusing youth for not voting. They’re too busy. They don’t have enough information, despite being glued to their phones. Politics is boring. Politicians are too old and corrupt to understand their socialist needs for free everything. Nobody told them where or how to vote, or taught them why; i.e., civics. It’s not their fault.
But a top hit among progressive youth is that voting makes no difference because billionaire capitalist fascist oligarchs have rigged the democratic system against the people.
Maybe so. But let’s ask: What better voice does democracy have than the vote? Isn’t a lot of protest just loud, proud pissing in the wind? Why not harness the terror and passion to win back Congress and fight Trump by supporting swing-state candidates? All else is elite youthful folly that feeds Trump.
Jeffrey Denny is a Washington writer.
