Jack Govern

Junior Jack Govern has been politically active since he was young. His political views and opinions formed at a young age and expanded as he got older, as he’s become more capable of understanding government and current issues. Today, Govern knows that politics is something he is interested in pursuing in his future, though he doesn’t know what his political career would necessarily look like.

“Once I was able to fully learn about [politics], it was just like, ‘Wow, this is something that affects everybody,’ and it brings us all together in some capacity, and I think that’s a really cool thing to be interested in,” said Govern.

Govern explained that as a child, his parents never talked to him about politics or instilled their views on him. Instead, they let him figure out his beliefs on his own, which led him to create an open-minded stance on a lot of issues. To keep up with politics, he occasionally watches the news with his family and reads articles on his phone when he has spare time.

Due to his involvement in band during school, Govern is not currently in any political classes or clubs, though he said he wishes he was able to. Govern also mentioned that he enjoys talking to his friends about politics, especially to make sure that they are aware of current issues.

“I know with some of my friends, they’re not necessarily as involved as I am, and as teenagers, the majority of us are still developing our views and we don’t necessarily keep up with politics like adults do,” Govern explained.

One prevalent issue that Govern is interested in is the United States’ image. He feels that a country’s image is very powerful and should be used for good. “I believe that, at times, it’s very disappointing to see our leaders be not kind or respectful to everybody in this country, not just the select few, because as leaders, they’re representing everybody in this country,” Govern emphasized.

“People look up to us and I think it’s important we keep that in mind because as the United States, we hold a lot of influence around the world and it’s crucial that we use that for good and not to bring others down, only to bring everybody up,” Govern stated.

Something that Govern is very passionate about is helping people. This is something that he spoke a lot about and hopes to achieve through a political career. He emphasized his belief that it is the government’s job to represent everybody in the United States equally.

“Our country was founded on the idea that everyone was created equal, and I think that’s something that’s very important to carry with you,” said Govern.

Govern stated that he is concerned for the rights of people, especially the rights of women. He believes that the United States has come a long way but still has a lot of work to do for guaranteed equality.

“I think that equality is very important to me,” he said. “I just want to make sure that everybody can grow up in this country equal to their neighbor or their schoolmates and that they have equal opportunity to everybody else.”

Govern explained that his mom, who works at a pharmaceutical company, experienced first-hand the unfairness regarding wage differences between men and women. This inspired him to learn more about the wage gap and become particularly interested in equality.

The importance of following politics, according to Govern, is crucial for capable government. “We are future voters and we are future generations of this country, and I think it’s important that we stay involved in politics because we are going to be inheriting all of these issues and so we need to make sure that we are aware of these issues, and we need to know what we can do to help,” stated Govern.

Because of social media and the internet, it has become easier to learn more about politics, but also easier to become misinformed. “With social media, there’s so much fake political stuff and you have to be careful about that because you don’t want someone influencing your political views in the wrong way. I think we have to be really careful with what we see and what we read,” Govern expressed.

He continued, “I think it’s important especially now because it seems like we live in [a society that says] you’re either a Republican or a Democrat, and I don’t like that because that just creates such a divide between us and at the end of the day, we’re all Americans and we’re all passionate about our country.”