Teen's Passion For Politics

by Jessica Bernhard

Everyone has a passion, something that makes them want to get up in the morning, something that makes their eyes sparkle and voice rush when they tell you about it. For a mother, it might be looking into the faces of her family around the dinner table. For a professor, it might be watching his students enjoy reading Catcher in the Rye and learning things about their lives that can't always be taught in a classroom. For a teenager, it might be going to a concert with a group of their friends and hearing music that fills their heart and makes them want to dance.

For Milton Boyd, Jr., an eighteen year old from Washington, D.C., that passion is politics. Inspired by the writings and lives of a litany of respected role models, like Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, author Langston Hughes, and Mahatma Gandhi to name a few, Milton, from a young age knew that public service could be the most important commitment that anyone could make in their lives. To influence and have a positive impact on the lives of other people was something that continues to be the very purpose of his being. Following in the footsteps of leaders closer to home, his mother, who runs communications for the city of the District of Columbia and also runs a theater group, his dad, to whom he credits the skills of his articulation, and his cousin, Bryant a brilliant pastor, Milton has emerged as an important voice in Washington, D.C.

The actual turning point event that set him on his path, however, came when he was only ten years old and was riding his bike home from the library. Followed home by some guys who put a gun to his head on his front steps, Milton let them take the bike. With the help of a neighbor and the police, a determined ten year old Milton got his bike back. "This incident ignited a fire. For a moment, I didn't want to go to the library or to ride my bike. But then, with the encouragement of my mom, I realized that you can't be a prisoner in your home. You can't let anyone deter you," he remarked.

To date, Milton has enjoyed taking many stands, such as with the NAACP's Youth Chapter in Maryland where he has been involved in getting young people to vote. Additionally, he was involved in the Gore campaign where he got a chance to "roll up his sleeves" with the presidential candidate. He also helped out with organizing the democratic national convention, working on the program formats and working with the delegates who attended. "It was an awesome experience working on election deadlines and working on press conferences," Milton says.

At Teen People Awards, TeenSpeak reporter Greer Howell with "Total Teen" Milton Boyd, Jr.