Phoebe Barr ’18:
In the weeks following the election of Donald Trump, intense and often violent political demonstrations have swept the country on both winning and losing sides. Young Episcopal alumni have shared their experiences on college campuses following the election. In Ann Arbor, University of Michigan student Sarah Barr ‘16 reported thousands of students “walking out of their classes,” in protest of the president-elect. “They marched all throughout campus, cheering things like ‘no alt-right, no KKK, no fascist USA.’” On the other side, “women reported being followed home or being heckled with Donald Trump lines such as ‘grab her by the p****.’ There was one where a woman was told she would be set on fire unless she removed her hijab. We all got crime alerts about it.” Nadiyah Browning ‘16, who now attends the University of Pennsylvania, said that “a few of my fellow black freshmen – there was about six of us, including myself – were put into a group chat called ‘n***** lynching’ and another one called ‘Trump’s disciples.’”
At Episcopal Academy, reactions have been more mellow, but emotions are still high. “Some were ecstatic at the outcome,” said Sam Willis, the head of Episcopal’s Diversity Awareness Club, “and others fear for the safety of their families.” He said that “the vast majority of our students are very polite and accepting, but sometimes, in an attempt to joke around with their friends, or maybe in more private atmospheres, students don’t understand that some things can be hurtful.” Alternatively, student Sean McGarrity ‘18, Vice President of Young Republicans, observed, “I was disappointed with the reaction towards Republicans and Trump supporters, especially with divisive social media posts.” Alex Oliva ‘19 voiced his hope that the country would calm down because “he’s our president now,” and McGarrity said that “I’m just looking forward to getting it back to normal.” However, The Democrat-Republican divide has remained palpably present.
Many believe that reconciliation of political views is the best way to move forward. Emma Sargeant ‘18, President of Young Democrats, emphasized that “I don’t support Trump – I don’t support any of of his policies and I don’t support him as a leader in temperament, but I disagree with the democratic protesters who are saying things like ‘#notmypresident,’ because the reality is the way that our governmental system works, he is our president, and it’s not a constructive debate to start.”
However, others have claimed that the election, far from the end of political discussion and debate on the president-elect, should be only the beginning. Sargeant added that “a constructive debate is to say that, since Trump in fact is your president, you have to become an activist and try to make sure the issues you care about are not forgotten in the next four years.” Sarah Walhberg, faculty adviser of PRISM, said that “a lot of people are upset about things he’s said, and concerned about the direction this country is potentially moving in. It is important to not just accept things we find disturbing. We need to work for change, and one step is making our voices heard.”
“I don’t care about your political or economic views,” said Browning, “but when it comes down to my life and the civil rights of other Americans, that’s where there’s a problem. What people don’t understand is that this election wasn’t just about free trade or a different way to run the system. People’s lives were on the ballot. And unfortunately, it doesn’t look like a good portion of America wanted minority communities to succeed. That’s really disheartening.”
In addition to heated demonstrations on both sides of the political aisle, there have also been messages of hope and unity for those feeling disenfranchised. Barr said that on the day after the election on the campus of the University of Michigan, “When students came to the Diag, it was filled with chalk messages of love and support – things like ‘I stand with you, we’re all together in this, love trumps hate.’ I think that was the best thing that happened.” In a similar vein, both PRISM and the DAC have been working to show a face of positivity in the wake of such a divisive election. “On the one hand, of course,” said Wahlberg, “it’s deeply disturbing to see these things happening – on the other hand, it’s sort of a wake-up call. I had a picture of what our country was like, how people tolerated each other, but now I’m seeing it’s a different situation. So this gives us more awareness of the attitudes that are out there and makes people realize their importance.” To that end, according to Willis, DAC has “tried to deal with both ranges of the spectrum by offering them spaces to have conversations.” PRISM and DAC have already had two joint conversations during Domino periods, which Sean McGarrity described as “really productive in settling tensions.”
In response to a divided country, Browning maintained that she was not discouraged. “We won’t let this be the end of it. We need to move past this and start to love one another, because hate is not going to get us anywhere.”