The word “division” has been a regular term in many American’s vocabularies when it comes to how we speak about our political landscape, and our relation to one another as citizens of the United States. Last week, on Nov. 5, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump went head to head, competing for the coveted position of the President of the United States. With 277 electoral votes, Trump was elected to become the nation’s 47th president on Nov. 6.

Since the votes were tallied and the election was officially called, people may have noticed an influx of information online, as well as an overwhelming amount of posts from people who associate with both the Republican and Democratic parties explaining why they are choosing to unfriend or disassociate with those who voted differently than they did. 

This year’s election was an emotional one from start to finish, with both sides extremely passionate about a wide range of topics, including abortion, foreign relations, immigration, and the economy. This year’s contentious race has led to college students turning against one another, ostracizing and eliminating those who feel differently than they do from their lives. Whether that is in the form of blocking someone on social media or fighting with their friends over political matters, the divisive nature of the election has already started to seep into the lives of the American people, specifically the younger generations who are active online. 

While in the moment it may seem gratifying and like an act of martyrdom to block your Trump-supporter peers or Harris-supporter cousins, it isn’t going to change the results of the election or the processes by which politicians are going to put policies in place or pass laws. In fact, it will only speed up their ability to make changes, because if the people are too busy fighting with one another to notice or report on it, who is going to realize what their plan is until it’s already been done?

As collegiate students, we yield more power than we realize. We are the next generation of doctors, lawyers, researchers, educators, innovators, and change-makers. We have the power to create a world for our future children and grandchildren that ensures they are able to afford housing, build a life with the people they love, and have opinions about major topics that they can debate intellectually and peacefully. 

This, however, is only possible when we step outside the safety blanket of our echo chambers, and participate in the conversations that allow us to question our beliefs and biases. It isn’t easy, but it is necessary. It is a major step in ensuring we don’t fall victim to turning on one another and giving up on the dream our founding fathers had of a country that stands for freedom and opportunity.

When we learn about new perspectives, even the ones we don’t agree with, we come up with new ideas. We discover how others’ lived experiences differ from our own. We learn how to help each other and we become more receptive to compromise and a happy medium. We are able to open up and connect, we strengthen our empathy skills, we consider people who we maybe hadn’t considered before. We make space at the table for people who hadn’t gotten an invitation before.

In 1780, John Adams, the second president of the United States famously said, “There is nothing which I dread so much as a division of the republic into two great parties, each arranged under its leader, and concerting measures in opposition to each other. This, in my humble apprehension, is to be dreaded as the greatest political evil under our Constitution.” 

Though Adams isn’t referring to the 2024 presidential election with this quote, his words are relevant 244 years later, and serve as a reminder that being patriotic doesn’t have anything to do with who you cast your vote for, or what party you identify with. True patriotism is embracing all points of view, cultures, and backgrounds, and making a constant, active effort to create a culture of freedom, not fear. So stop calling your friends uneducated, and stop treating a political decision like The Super Bowl. Unblock your roommate and open your ears to your grandparents.

It is the belief of The Whit Staff that in order to ensure this cultural division comes to an end for our country’s political future, it must begin with our generation, in our everyday lives. With friends, with family, with roommates, and with colleagues. In order for politicians to stop contributing to the division of the American people we must first take away their power to do so. We must stop fighting with one another, and begin thinking of actionable ways to pave the way and set an example for generations to come.

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