Last night, thousands gathered at Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center to “Feel the Bern.”

The crowd at the Bernie Sanders rally was enthusiastic; cheers and applause followed every single statement made by the Democratic presidential hopeful. People of all ages, genders and ethnicities came together to support Sanders by holding up signs sporting phrases such as “Bern Baby Bern,” “Millenial + My Dad for Bernie” and of course, “Feel the Bern.”

Senator Sanders was introduced by Nina Turner, former Ohio State Senator. Turner has been a long-time supporter of Hillary Clinton, and recently switched sides to endorse Sanders. In her introduction, she stressed that “enough is enough,” regarding issues such as the minimum wage, student debt and racial discrimination.

When Sanders stepped up to the podium, the crowd erupted in cheers, loudly chanting “Ber-nie!”

He began his speech by passionately denouncing the attacks in Paris and condemning politicians who use acts of terror to further their own political agenda.

“Now is not the time for cheap political talk, or trying to take political advantage of this difficult moment,” he said.

Additionally, Sanders made it a point that Americans should not respond to the violence with racism, hatred or Islamophobia.

“We will not turn our backs on the refugees,” he said.

Many BHS students and alumnae attended the rally, along with thousands of other high school and college students. The issues Sanders addressed are very relevant to young people. He expressed his concern regarding the absurdly high price of a college education and proposed free tuition for all public universities.

The crowd showed massive support for the candidate’s statements about how hard it is for young people to find jobs, even with a high school or college degree. He emphasized the correlation between unemployment and crime for people in their 20s. As a solution, Sanders suggested that the US should cut some of the money spent on jails and spend more on education.

With issues of racism roiling college campuses around the country, many in the crowd responded emotionally when Sanders referenced the issue, and hit home when he brought up Tamir Rice. Members of the audience shouted “That ain’t right!” and “That’s the truth,” when the senator drew attention to institutionalized racism in America.

Because much of Sanders’ stump speech is directly relevant for people in their late teens and early twenties, he has inspired a lot of passion in young people.

2011 BHS graduate Lisa Friedman, now a law student at Case, attended the rally. She stressed how important it is for young voters to get to the polls.

“Encourage as many of your friends to vote as you can,” she said. “The future of our country really is in your hands.”