‘Why don’t you care’ – Quinnipiac community sounds off on political apathy

By Jack Spiegel

For centuries, young people, particularly those aged 18-29 have been the face of recent political movements across the country.

This past week at universities across the United States, students have been mobilizing on campus in protest of their respective university’s ties to Israel.

Greta Thunberg, 21, has been the face of the climate change movement. Every week, she would walk out of her Sweden middle and high school classrooms to bring awareness to global warming and rising sea levels.

When the Dobbs v. Jackson decision was leaked in May 2022, young people mobilized in nearly every major city in America and even some cities abroad. 

Aside from a gathering of approximately 30 people on May 4, 2022, Quinnipiac University’s student body has been radio silent on pertinent political issues.

On April 26, 2024, former Mayor of New York, Bill De Blasio, spoke at Quinnipiac as a part of Quinnipiac University Democrats’ Speaker Series.

His remarks came in the midst of a weeks’ worth of protests at approximately 100 college campuses across the country, including the most prominent one at Columbia University, in De Blasio’s former jurisdiction.

De Blasio likened these recent protests to the anti-war movement during the Vietnam era, but was careful not to confuse the two.

He also spoke on the importance of the college student in social justice movements.

“There's been a massive student nexus for centuries, when you're going back to the 1700s. So, it's indispensable,” De Blasio said about protests at universities. “But anyone who's like, ‘oh, this doesn't matter,’ doesn't know their history.”

De Blasio spoke to a crowd of about 30 students, and the discussion was moderated by the president of Quinnipiac Democrats, Nick Fizzano.

Fizzano, 19, is a sophomore political science major from Hopkinton, Rhode Island and was recently elected to be the Student Government Association Vice President of Student Experience, in addition to his role in QU Democrats.

Fizzano is something of an anomaly when it comes to political engagement at Quinnipiac.

In addition to his leadership roles on campus, he spends his summers and falls volunteering on political campaigns and engaging in hearty discussions with friends across the political spectrum.

Despite his involvement with the university, Fizzano did not mince words about his thoughts on the university’s culture.

“For a school that has the capability to be such a politically inclined University, we continuously have a student body that is disinterested in what affects them,” Fizzano said.

Fizzano says that there is a culture of apathy that reigns supreme at Quinnipiac.

“We have great students, and they're very focused on what they're focused on,” Fizzano said. “But when it comes to the world around them, and what affects them, we fall incredibly short because so many of us don't even pay any mind.”

While Fizzano does not think this issue is unique to Quinnipiac, he does feel that college institutions have a responsibility to engage their students in civic responsibility.

“I think this is really the first area where many people begin to form their own individual political beliefs,” Fizzano said. “It's no longer your father's beliefs. It's no longer your mother's beliefs. It’s your beliefs, and that separation is important in fostering a unique political mind.”

It’s not about indoctrinating the student body with specific ideologies, but rather the ideas of learning and fostering conversations about being a contributing member of society, Fizzano said.

On and off campus, religious institutions are some of the most influential when it comes to mobilizing voters.

“Every Jew I've ever met up until your generation and the next generation above you has always voted,” Rabbi Reena Judd said.

Judd, 61, has been the rabbi at Quinnipiac for 21 years and is not only a spiritual advisor for students, but she is also an advocate for being a contributing member of society.

When talking to her Jewish students, she reminds them that their ancestors two or three generations before them didn’t have the same rights they do now.

“Your people couldn't vote. They couldn't vote in Russia. They couldn't vote Poland. They couldn't vote in Germany,” Judd said. “Every year that we're having a presidential election, I preach about voting. I've preached about how women couldn't vote. I preached about how Jews couldn’t vote.”

For Judd, there is not one thing she can point to that is a reason for Quinnipiac’s political apathy, but not voting gives away your voice to the people in power.

“What I do think – being this age now – is that it is in the best interest of the people with power to keep [young people] from voting,” Judd said. “It's giving away so much power to people that are like ‘I'm not going to vote because Trump's a jerk and Biden's too old.’ But that’s not actualizing your power, that gives it away!”

This trend of political apathy is not exclusive to Quinnipiac, but Judd says it is perfect illustration of broader trends.

“The bottleneck of people who choose to vote has gotten narrower and narrower. [Quinnipiac] was reputed in the 70s and 80s as a party school that didn't vote, but now we're in the 2020s, and while it might no longer be a party school, it doesn't vote,” Judd said. “I fear mostly from myself, because your people's lack of voting.”

She doesn’t expect students to solve the issues of the world, but Judd does feel that she screams into the void when telling students to get out and vote.

“Why don’t you care?” Judd asked of this generation.