By René Biberstein, TG Co-op Student
"We have to give the government a kick in the butt once in a while," says Université de Moncton student Bruno Roy. This is a surprising statement, coming from the recently retired head the of Young Liberals of Canada. It is even more surprising to hear him say that it echoes the sentiments of Jean Chrétien. Historically, politicians have had mixed reactions to the idea of youth empowerment in political parties. Youth groups, long time divisions of nearly every political party in Canada, have also traditionally been ignored by the media. Well established in most universities and some secondary schools, many however have considerable membership. But how much influence do they wield when it comes to party policy?
"If we were at a leadership convention &emdash; one third of the voting members would be youth," says Jeff Wagner of the Progressive Conservative Youth Federation. As a grade 12 student at Toronto's St. Michael's College School, Wagner finds that the power of his school group to act on its own is limited. "The school [branch of PC Youth] is more an awareness group. Because we are limited to the school we can't take any real action."
Roy also finds that the most productive forum for putting suggestions to the party are conventions. In the biennial convention of the Liberal party, held from March 18th to 21st 1998, the Young Liberals put forward a number of new initiatives. "The Prime Minister said that in forty years of conventions, he had never seen so many new faces," says Roy.
Resolutions presented were first discussed in local groups, which exist in nearly every campus in the country. Those winning support at the convention included new benefits for same-sex couples, protections for endangered species and a rejection of the harsh immigration laws currently being imposed in Canada.
This vein of thought is not coincidental. "The Young Liberals are trying to be the social conscience of the party and the progressive element," says Roy. "Last time around we adopted a resolution on euthanasia." While not binding to the party, a vote often leads to modification of its platform. "If you're not radical when you're young," he says quoting the Prime Minister "you're going to get old soon."
Wagner feels that youth groups play a key role in improving the capabilities of tomorrow's politicians. "They're [youth leaders] getting the education to become better leaders in the community," he says. "If you want to play hockey, you join the hockey team." But youth joining in the political process can be helpful regardless of what their career plans are, Wagner maintains. "We need an educated and concerned public," he says.
He does not feel that it is essential to constantly challenge his party's ideological stance. "The youth's job is not to tow the party line," he says. "However, once the policy has been established it is detrimental to disagree." The PC Youth tend to stay away from major issues. "Most of our suggestions aren't monumental," says Wagner.
Before elections, youth group activity usually increases. "We played a big role in the [Liberal] campaign," says Roy. Handing out pamphlets, putting up posters and promoting prospective MPs and MPPs are all part of the job. "We do polling, we ask people if we can put signs on their lawns," says Wagner.
The Liberals' March conference also marked a stepping down for Bruno Roy. Passing on the presidency of the Young Liberals to Véronique de Passillé, he too feels positive about youth groups priming a new generation of leaders. "The future looks so bright, I have to wear shades," he concludes.
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