What’s up with politics these days? Politics in America has become a heavy and depressing topic and I want to take the time to skip the politics and beliefs talk and focus on the divisive nature of the American government. 

            There have always been boards with questions put on around campus and more specifically in the student center as a way to get SLU students to engage in public discussions in a very public way. The issue is, it does not go any further than that. While boards with questions are a great conversation starter for you and your friends they do not go beyond that. The boards are a way for everyone to scribble their opinions on and maybe provide an angry doodle or two as a response to someone else’s answer. 

            During an election year and a full-on pandemic, I do not think a board stating “United We Can” was the way to go especially since more than half our student body is not even on campus. The problem is that we are all zoom fatigued and in desperate need of some human interaction so when we see signs up like this, it’s just a reminder that there may not be as much hope as we like to make ourselves believe. I would love to have seen or heard the two students that disagreed on Trump speak to each other in person and come to an understanding. We seem to have forgotten our compassion and this is why it’s important to have those uncomfortable conversations. A piece of paper won’t do it and no, like you, I do not have an answer as to how we can move forward or end all bi-partisan issues but I know that it has to start with an open dialog. If I see one more sad face after a Political debate I might just lose it. 

            Our president contracted COVID and with a team of medical staff, he was able to what we assume safely recover while more than 8 million Americans died due to the virus. I do not know about anyone else but all politics aside, this seems like a topic to discuss by putting away differences and figuring out our middle ground. Now more than ever it seems crucial for people to begin to practice their communication skills and to start looking at one another with enough compassion to listen and care when our neighbor is struggling. 

            If one pub worker catches the virus or one family unit catches it, the whole school shuts down. We have made it this far making CNN news for our successful reopening and those of us on campus seem to be more divided and quiet about this division than ever. When did our public safety and health become a political issue? It should not be. It should not matter if you are a for Trump or against him. For Biden or against him. You should be for the well being of people. You should be for the bettering of the community around you. As a community assistant on campus, all I’ve heard is praise for our efforts to build community during these hard times but it’s difficult to build community when the community refuses to speak to one another for fear of disagreement. 

            I am glad the school has not had any major incidents surrounding politics because it means that we are all mature enough to not allow the circus of this election to come between us on campus. Now let’s get uncomfortable and reach out to the other side regardless of where you stand politically.