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WHAT'S ON>The Orwell Project

The Orwell Project

Synapse hopes to help turn the tide of civic complacency.

Did you know:

• 33% -Since 1972, voter turnout for young people between the ages of 18 and 24 has declined by almost 33 percent. (Carnegie Corporation study)
• 25% - Young people between the ages of 18 and 30 are now the largest voting block in the United States: 43 million individuals making up 25 percent of the electorate.
• 13% - In November 2002, with a number of pivotal electoral contests to be decided, less than 13 percent of young people were expected to show up on Election Day. (Carnegie Corporation)
• 51% - 51 percent of New York's voting-age population did NOT vote during the 2000 presidential election. (Drum Major Institute for Public Policy)

We have a crisis on our hands. Civics lessons, it would appear, are not enough. Simply registering people to vote is not enough. An entire generation of young adults has grown up disinterested in the world around them, disaffected by economic and political realities that seem wholly out of their control. This generation has been effectively disenfranchised, not because they are not allowed to vote, but because they fail to see the value in the most basic ritual of a free and open society.

With The Orwell Project, Synapse is looking to start turning the tide of civic complacency with 1,000 students. By sparking conversations and inspiring lively debate about the direction America is heading, we will help these young people discover the power of their voice.

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