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“Voting is important simply to affect legislation as much as we can. Whatever issues are important to you, and for me there are countless—from women’s rights, equal rights, and the environment—voting determines whether those issues are addressed and how they are addressed. Getting someone in [office] who is more aligned with my values, someone who can affect the Supreme Court, and so many other countless areas of our government is the reason why I vote. I just want to make my voice heard, it’s as simple as that.

“A lot of people think—if I don’t know about all of the policies and I’m not informed, I’m not sure if I can speak out. I feel that way often, but all of our voices and votes matter. I hear Rosario [Dawson] and I’m like, ‘Wow, she’s so comprehensive. If I’m not that comprehensive, do I still have a voice? Do I still have an opinion?’ I would encourage everyone to read as much as they can about their local representatives and whatever race we’re going into. Especially for this presidential race, and use that research to form your own opinions.

“As a new mom I think, How do we change the system? This system is broken and it’s just not working. I am hoping for someone with a voice of reason leading us and [hoping] just to dial down the hatred and anger. The negativity [from] this administration is so fierce and to have someone who can shine a little more positivity out there is what we all need—and I look forward to that. We need a breath of calm, even if [Biden] is not ideal, he’s better than what we have now.

“Someone inspiring me at the moment is my friend Winnie Wong, who is one of the founding organizers of Occupy Wall Street. She went on to work for The People for Bernie [Sanders], and following that she actually worked closely with Bernie on his campaign. Winnie is extremely vocal and she’s always on the streets, at all the protests. So just being around her definitely inspires me and fires me up. I [also] think Taylor Swift is amazing in how outspoken she is when using her platform. Cardi B and her whole Bernie push, I found that really inspiring. Honestly, their passion is so contagious. We need people [like them] who can reach certain demographics, especially [the] young people, which is who we really need to get out there and vote.”

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