By Charlie Aftel

New York State Senator Joe Griffo spoke to the citizens of Boys State at an assembly on July 2. Previously, Griffo has had many different roles in politics, such as being the Mayor of Rome, New York, and the Executive of Oneida County, New York. Currently, Griffo is Assistant Minority Leader of the State Senate and represents Oneida, Madison, and parts of Chenango and Herkimer counties. He spoke about his experiences in the State Senate and why we should stay involved in state politics. 

Griffo described many aspects of his job and gave the citizens examples of previous tasks he has dealt with. For instance, he talked about how he sponsored a bill to bring mixed martial arts (MMA) to the state of New York, which was ultimately successful.

The state did not allow MMA fighting up until this point. He also talked about how is trying to get bills passed that would allow police officers and officials to know if a driver was texting before an accident occurs. Griffo has expressed that there is new technology that can be used to detect texting on phones. This bill could ultimately make roads safer and deter drivers even more from texting and driving. 

Griffo discussed why it is important to stay involved in state politics throughout the rest of the citizens’ high school careers and into their future lives. He bought an example of a law the governor of the state is trying to pass, which is to restrict access to cell phones in schools. This statement by Griffo was quickly met with boos from the audience. After this happened, Griffo explained why we need to stay involved: if a law is passed that people see negatively affecting them, action can be taken, such as protesting, to prevent the law from passing. 

“Be informed, stay interested, and get involved … you can make a difference” was Griffo’s message throughout the whole speech. If citizens are informed, stay interested and then get involved, they themselves can stop laws from passing that they do not agree with. It is important to keep all these aspects in mind when following politics and so citizens can achieve the change they want in society.