MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — 'Ear' we go again! We had our second 13WMAZ Listening Lab Wednesday at the Georgia College & State University campus.
We mostly had students stop by, but Jessica Cha was all ears when she went out there to talk to some folks, and find out what issues are on their minds.
"My concerns were climate change, and abortion, and just voter awareness also,” says Emily Lanham, a sophomore political science major.
Those were some of the common concerns students had, as well as, "Not raising taxes, especially when we're also dealing with inflation. That's something I think about a lot,” explains Michael Thomas.
Political science major Emerson Ham says one of the most important things to focus on as elections are happening is the degradation, and mistrust of who we vote for.
All 27 of those states, in all those positions, have an election-denying candidate running for those. They could do serious damage to our election system and further degrade the trust that is in our system already,” Hamm explains.
Caroline Bell is a junior majoring in criminal justice.
“Without people coming up and volunteering to talk, you're never going to get different opinions that you wouldn't have gotten otherwise,” she says.
Bell says she is currently concerned with the amount teachers are paid, and women's bodily autonomy. She says sometimes the voices of the younger generation may not be taken seriously, but they're just as important.
"You're coming and getting the opinion of college students, and we're the current voting age right now. I just think it's special that you get to hear these opinions from us who are so important in society right now,” Bell says.
Jesse Butler adds to that by saying, “We're going to be the generation coming in after the older generations, so wouldn't you want to hear what the younger generation has to say?”
Nicholas Wimblish says it's important for students to speak up to make a difference.
"Whatever issue you care about, make your voice heard. No voice is too small and be vocally passionate about the issues you're most comfortable with,” he says. “Most importantly -- go make your voice heard at the polls where it matters.”.
We've had just a taste of what the younger generation in Milledgeville had to say.
If you didn't get a chance to fill out our survey, you can do so here. If you'd like to voice your opinions about issues that matter to you, our next Listening Lab will be at the Dublin Civitan Fair next Thursday on October 27. It runs from 6 p.m. - 8 p.m.