By Shawna Takaki | Staff Writer

Word on the Street: Are you voting this upcoming election? Do you care about politics? What do you think are the major issues currently?

Julius Laurentius
Age: 30
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Major: Culinary Arts

“I will be voting this Election Day, but I can’t recall who I’m voting for. … We need to work on immigration reform. … I believe we should have universal healthcare for all of us. We should look at sustainability, how we can improve our food. … We should not be depending on other countries for manufacturing. … We should focus on manufacturing within the United States, which I believe is more of a personal thing, because I’m a national socialist, so I believe our country can provide for ourselves and be self-sufficient.”

Cob Coseo
Age: 20
Hometown: Seoul, South Korea
Major: ESOL

“I don’t really care about politics.”

 

 

 

Noelani Fortin
Age: 18
Hometown: Piʻikoi, Oʻahu
Major: New Media Arts

“I don’t know. … [I’m] not really into politics. … But I want world peace, obviously.”

Kanani Cruz
Age: 17
Hometown: Honolulu, O’ahu
Major: Undecided

“I cannot vote yet. … Though I would only vote after research when I’m able to vote. I do care about politics but don’t involve myself in any politics as of yet due to hearing more negative than good. … There are a lot of issues in the world but I think one of the biggest ones is we’re heading towards an inevitable death of our own making by our destruction of the world.”

Sheila Mendez
Age: 23
Hometown: Kailua, Oʻahu
Major: Nursing

“Yes, I’ll be voting. … The super rich people definitely don’t need to be that rich. [There’s] lots of hunger, lots of famine, lots of drug addicts. … For Hawaiʻi specifically, our native people aren’t being compensated. … The homeland is leasing, so the government could kick you out, even if you’ve been there for generations. … Hawaiʻi has changed a lot for tourists and rich people. They’re building a lot of high rises that no one can afford. Lots of people have to move because they can’t afford to live here anymore. It’s not fair for our locals. I could never live here forever, and that sucks.”