20 Young Scottish Voters Explain Why A Yes Vote Matters [PICS]

With the vote only 6 weeks away, people all over Scotland are making up their minds. But why should young people vote Yes? Nothing ever changes, right? These 20 young voters explain why Yes is an opportunity they are embracing.

1. Ellie, 16, Glasgow

'Scotland has a very different political mindset to those in the rest of the UK - just look at Trident, high university tuition fees in England and Wales, the Tories privatizing the NHS... If we want our political views to actually change something, we need to vote Yes in September.'

2. Robin, 19, Penicuik

'Scotland has been misrepresented at Westminster for years. A Yes vote gives us the chance to be represented properly and fairly. Scotland should be governed by the people who live here.'

3. Rachel, 19, Edinburgh

'I’ll be voting Yes because people living in Scotland deserve a government that not only has the powers to meet their needs but cares about doing so.'

4. Gavin, 17, Ardrossan

'I support independence because Scotland needs to get the governments we vote for. We need to start discussing policy and how to tackle our problems rather than having the populist politics of Westminster. Independence will give us the chance to make a country to be proud of. A country where we can look outward, and the rest of the world will look inward and think ..... 'jammy wee buggers''

5. Maria, 23, Stirling

'People who live and work in Scotland deserve ownership of the decisions that affect Scotland. Coming from a small Nordic country (Finland), I know that being independent works for the Finns, and I’m certain it will work for the Scots. Independence is a means to an end, an opportunity to create a fairer and more politically responsive society.'

6. Graeme, 22, Glasgow

'I want a government that prioritises social security for citizens, not wasting money on nuclear weapons.'

7. Aileen, 21, Inverness

'I am voting Yes because the politics of Scottish citizens are far more innovative and just than the narrow-minded self-servitude of the Westminster government in London, that systematically scapegoats our society's weakest members.'

8. Stephen, 26, Paisley

'I'm voting yes because even though we voted against the Tories, we have been ruled by them and suffered the consequences of policies made that we had no control over. I'm voting yes for a government that actually represents the people of Scotland, voted for by the people of Scotland.'

9. Kirsten, 19, Stirling

'Our generation doesn't have to accept spending three hundred and fifty thousand pounds an hour on nuclear weapons while food banks are opened across the country and 1 in 4 children are born into poverty. We can change this with independence.'

10. Greg, 25, Calton

'I'm voting Yes because I believe that Scotland will be a fairer and more democratic place with independence. If we want to make Scotland better then we have to start by giving ourselves the power to change it.'

11. Zara, 28, Glasgow

'I’m voting No because 200 celebrities wrote a letter telling me to. JUST KIDDING! I’m voting Yes because I think independence is the route to a fairer, more democratic society. It’s time for Scotland to grow up. We can do it!'

12. Max, 27, Lochwinnoch

'On the 18th of September we choose choice, or we choose someone else to choose for us. A yes vote could be the biggest advert for our culture, tourism, business and our history that our nation has ever seen. Let's not be the only country in history to say no to our independence.'

13. Kirsten, 17, Glasgow

'I want rid of nuclear weapons. It's safe enough for Trident warheads to sit on the Clyde but it's not safe enough for them to sit on the Thames? I don't think so.'

14. Joshua Samuel Stanley Miller, 20, Prestwick

'We live in a country where the political system is skewed towards elites, big business and faceless corporations. A Yes vote in itself does not change this, we have to take responsibility for ourselves. A Yes vote will only result in a better country if the cultural movement that has campaigned for a Yes vote retains its momentum, continues growing, and demands nothing less than absolute democracy from the new Scottish Parliament.

I believe this will happen. That's why I'm voting Yes.'

15. Stephanie, 18, East Renfrewshire

'We have the chance to be in control of our own destiny. Everything won't be perfect, but if we vote Yes we will have the chance to shape our own future.'

16. David, 19, Dumfries

'With independence we would be able to introduce welfare policies that help people rather than punish them for being poor, being ill or being old. We would be able to work more closely with the international community to help build a better and more peaceful world.'

17. Ruth, 27, Glasgow

'Independence means Scotland can choose its own path. We can put in place policies that focus on job creation and keep our young people here. We can be the northern light to London's dark star.'

18. Calum, 20, Freuchie

'It gives us an opportunity to build a country from scratch - nothing could be more exciting than that.'

19. Sarah, 17, Edinburgh

'With the gap between the richest and poorest growing every day, there is no hope of this resolving itself unless we take the important decisions ourselves.'

20. Anum, 21, Motherwell

'I'm a fine example of someone from the Labour Party who is proudly backing independence. I am voting Yes for the simple reason that I believe Scotland should be a nation which makes its own decisions and shapes its own future, so that we - as an independent Scotland - can build a better nation, together.'