In the aftermath of the 2012 Presidential Race, emotions reached an all new level of political intensity. With the results of the election casted and counted, states across the US immediately began to petition for secession from their reelected leader and reelected government. In an article from the BBC dated November 12, 2012, it states that over 700,000 signatures from all 50 states have already contributed to the petition of their statehood removal. Though the petitions themselves are merely symbolic, just what exactly are we symbolizing with these petitions? <\/span><\/p>\n As we look back on the course of the elections, we see that the people of the United States have been everything but unanimous on their political lines and boundaries. With such firm divisions over being \u201cRight Wing\u201d and \u201cLeft Wing,\u201d \u201cConservative\u201d and \u201cLiberal,\u201d we have chosen to isolate ourselves from an entire portion of the population simply because they support different ideas. Divisions within and among the people have only magnified our degree of separation. <\/span><\/p>\n Are these divisions really<\/em> progress? Is our continued isolation, and now even secession, from those who think different than we do a part of the path to creating the \u201cperfect\u201d society? \u00a0The \u201cus versus them\u201d illusion that has been applied by nearly every politician of every age has kept us from remembering the same humanity that lies within the other side. In the face of such separation, we need to redefine Who We Are as a nation \u2013 are we going to continue to live that separation or will we come together to love our nation and our brother? \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The answers we search for to solve today\u2019s greatest challenges are not found in one man living in a white house in Washington, but are found within the creative conversation and collaboration of the whole. With an understanding of Who We Are as individuals, we can integrate that same higher message into the collective decision of Who We Are as a Nation. By having an understanding of a unified vision, we can work toward that goal, instead of working against each other. As we all take a step in that singular direction, our purpose and our ideas become one. We can choose a New Path for America, one which brings people together under a common purpose and a common goal to face the challenges ahead. <\/span><\/p>\n We, the teens, will be the next generation of leaders who will determine America\u2019s New Path. By choosing to apply our<\/em> greatest version of the grandest vision we ever had about our country, true progress and transformation can happen. We can let go of the old messages and move forward, towards new solutions for a new generation. By thinking above party lines, by living above party divisions, we can create our own agenda, which serves to fill the highest purposes of our highest thoughts. By simply redefining ourselves by our unity rather than our division, we are true change. <\/span><\/p>\n