Rep. Fattman Takes Part in Twitter Town Hall as Part of Millennial Engagement Initiative

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Senator Ryan Fattman joined Senate President Stan Rosenberg and Eric Lesser held a Twitter Town Hall and College Student Roundtable Monday as part of the Senate’s new Millennial Engagement Initiative.

“The biggest takeaway from these Millennial events is that the frequent knocks against our generation about being apathetic towards American civics, or simply not being engaged is false. Young people care greatly about the issues of the day and how government affects them.  In fact, they may be engaged more than ever before because of new mediums of communication,” said Fattman.

The Day

In the first event of the day, Senators fielded questions from young people and responded via the social media site Twitter. Topics ranged from manufacturing and renewable energy to affordable housing and economic development.

Later  in the day, the Senators gathered to host a roundtable discussion with leaders of the College Democrats of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Alliance of College Republicans.

Students shared their opinions on a variety of issues, including student debt loads, public service and civic engagement, and ride sharing services such as Uber and Lyft.

Millennial Engagement Initiative

The Initiative, co-chaired by Lesser and Fattman, was announced earlier this month by Senate President Stan Rosenberg. The initiative aims to encourage more millennials to become involved in the legislative process.

“Young people’s participation in government is vital to the success of our Commonwealth as a whole. The Senate’s Twitter Town Hall and College Student Roundtable are simple but important steps to help make sure they are part of the conversation,” said Lesser.

Millennials, those born after 1980, are the largest and most diverse generation in the United States. A recent Harvard University survey found that only seven percent of millennials reported having participated in government.