Dear future president,

Regardless of who you are, we are endorsing these problems that need to be addressed. We are not endorsing you as a candidate, but we endorse fixing the on-going issues our country is suffering from. These issues need to be fixed because they concern the safety, well-being and health of our citizens and communities.

One of the large issues we endorse addressing right away is gun violence. Gun violence has became a terrible, recurring tragedy in the United States, and that is not okay. There needs to be stricter gun laws to help solve this horrible problem.

The majority of the time the television is on, there is news about another shooting. The majority of these shootings could have been prevented. Innocent people are being killed, and it feels as if gun violence is only becoming more common.

Trying to lessen gun violence is a large part of what we need to fix in our country, however another issue that needs to be fixed within the United States is drug abuse.

We endorse addressing drug abuse because the use of drugs can lead to violence, criminal activity and major health issues. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, drug use has been increasing in the last decade.

Drugs are too easy to access, and you should work to fix that. As a group of high school students, we see teenagers being peer pressured into drinking alcohol and using drugs frequently. Drugs are obviously against the law, and no one should be using them, especially teenagers. Stricter drug policies should be enforced to decrease the amount of people participating in substance abuse.

A reason drug abuse should have your attention is the health issues it causes. Another health issue that we endorse assessing is the Zika virus. We endorse disease control centers handling the Zika virus because we want the citizens of this country to stay healthy.

The Zika virus is in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Hospitals and disease care centers should be following a stronger protocol to prevent the spread of Zika and other diseases to keep the citizens of the United States healthy.

It is also difficult for citizens of this country to stay healthy when poverty is an issue. We endorse assessing poverty so everyone has proper nutrition and does not go hungry.

To fix poverty, more shelters should be built. Poverty has risen in the last couple of decades, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

There are people and families living on the streets. It is not safe to live on the street. They struggle to find fresh food and clothing.

The only shelter people have access to are the limited homeless shelters, and the majority of those are in large cities. They fill up easily and there has been known criminal activity in them, such as fights and stealing. One of your priorities should be to get the citizens of this country off of the streets and safe again.
Children on the streets are not safe, and neither are children living in abusive homes. Children are being abused every single day. This is not okay. There needs to be more thorough background checks on foster parents. A child’s home is a place where they are supposed to feel safe, not afraid. Adults who abuse children should no longer be allowed to raise them, and the children should be moved to thoroughly-checked, good homes to have a better life.

These issues are just a few of many that need to be fixed. We want these issues to be recognized so our country is a better place. We hope you will work on the issues we addressed in this letter to make America a safe and happy environment.

Sincerely,

The Uncaged Student News staff from Stockbridge High School, Stockbridge MI