By Evelyn Lucado
Opinion Editor
Over a month into President Donald Trump’s second term in office, Americans across the board are more divided than ever, all the way from the broad spectrum of American politics down to college campuses. This division, especially on college campuses, has discouraged many from discussing hot button political topics.
College political organizations, from both the left and the right, play crucial roles in fostering civic engagement and providing a space for students to learn how to take part in civil political discourse and talk to each other. The newly revived Washington College Republicans provide students across the political spectrum a chance to begin their own civic engagement.
According to club president freshman Daniel McBride, the College Republicans hope to encourage students to begin bridging political gaps and get involved in campus political engagement, serving as a safe space for students who might not have experience in politics to learn how to engage.
“Groups like the College Republicans, College Libertarians, College Democrats, and the like, truly any campus political organization, generally enhance the college milieu, fostering both affinity among the body and youth presence within the broader party,” McBride said.
The College Republicans provide students from both sides of the political spectrum to begin engaging with politics. Whether or not they agree with the club’s values, it provides a chance for students affiliated or not with any political party to break away from devastating echo chambers.
According to theNew York Times, understanding that the biggest divide in America is not necessarily between the left and the right, but between those who are civically engaged and those who are not is crucial. While it is understandable to want to distance oneself from politics, turning a blind eye as American lawmakers and the current administration are making efforts to divide the American people is to surrender your voice. Civic disengagement encourages the loudest, most extreme voices to dominate the conversation, creating distrust and contempt while dejecting nuanced and solution-oriented conversations.
“We hope to work with those on both sides of this spectrum, to ensure comfortability, equity, inclusion, and dialogue, both within our organizational efforts and broadly, here at WC and beyond,” McBride said.
According to Inside Higher Ed, surveyed college students shared their reluctance to discuss politics on campus, fearing negative social repercussions. This fear prevents students from exploring viewpoints away from their own, pushing them to find comfort in communities that wholly agree with their beliefs.
However, improvement is impossible in an echo chamber. Staying within a social comfort zone prevents students from having these crucial conversations and creates an “us versus them” mentality. Echo chambers, in the isolation they create, foster these political extremes and contempt for the “other side.”
According to prior Elm coverage, other campus organizations such as Politalks, a club formed with the goal of bridging the political divide, play similar roles to the College Republicans in breaking up these echo chambers. For example, last semester, Politalks invited former Maryland delegate Heather Mizuer to give a lecture on civil political discourse and encourage compassion and understanding between political opponents.
Events like these, as well as the clubs who host them, provide students with the opportunity to start having this crucial dialogue.
Conversations surrounding civic engagement can start small. More often than not, pressing national debates often overshadow local politics. Getting involved at the local level is vital in making progress. Clubs such as the College Republicans and the College Democrats give students a chance to practice this engagement.
“In an age ripe with political contention on college campuses, the College Republicans hopes to present the student body with an equitable and palatable locus to engage with and grow to understand the Republican Party and its diverse member base,” McBride said.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
Photo Caption: The Washington College Republicans provide students a chance to start the hard conversations and begin breaking political echo chambers.