Born and raised in the liberal-wonderland that is Los Angeles, Skidmore’s political atmosphere has always felt like a warm embrace to me. Never once have I felt threatened or scared to express my political opinions, and discussions about politics have never been anything but pleasant and empowering. However, as a political science major with a dream to one day hold public office, I understand how important it is to understand political viewpoints different from my own and have civil discussions with people who have opposing political opinions.
I strongly believe that while it is nice to be surrounded by like-minded people, Skidmore’s one-sided political climate is problematic. It is important that all people, regardless of their party affiliation, feel comfortable and safe expressing their opinions. I feel as though Republicans in general and people who voted for Donald Trump in particular have no platform to express why they vote the way that they do.
I wanted the opportunity to speak to someone who voted for Trump and ask them some questions about their recent experiences and feelings, but the few people I did find who voted for Trump were unwilling to talk to me for this reason. I assured them that the questions I would be asking were not accusatory or biased and I really was just out to get a perspective that was different from typical liberal one. At first I didn’t understand why they turned down my offer to give them an opportunity to respond to people who attacked them for voting for Trump. I mean, they voted for Donald Trump for a reason, I just wanted to know what that reason was and how they felt being the political minority on campus. But now I think I understand. For someone whose political beliefs, ones that they were most likely raised with, are put down and attacked daily at Skidmore, talking politics is probably pretty scary. It would make sense that someone who feels they’ve had to hide their political affiliation for over a year is not ready to talk about their vote. For this reason, I sat down with Alex* and asked him a few questions about his experience as a Republican on a predominantly liberal campus.
HC: Did you know about Skidmore’s liberal reputation before freshman year?
A: Yeah I did but it didn’t make me like the school any less.
HC: Do you feel that your views have changed at all because you spend time with liberal people?
A: I have a mix of liberal and conservative friends but just because it’s Skidmore, most of my friends are liberal. I don’t know if being around them or on a liberal campus has really changed my views. I have mixed views to begin with so I don’t think my friend’s influence has made that much of a difference.
HC: What assumptions do you think people make about you based on your political party?
A: I think people assume I’m racist and super privileged and that I don’t really care about others which isn’t true.
HC: What are your core beliefs that align with the Republican party?
A: I didn’t really choose to be a Republican. The Republican party is just the one that made sense to be based on what I was taught as a child. Growing up I was a lot more exposed to conservative beliefs than I was to liberal ones which is why I never thought to reconsider my political affiliation. It’s mostly an economic thing. People have tried to change my views before but nothing they’ve said has really resonated with me.
HC: Do you ever feel like you cannot voice your political opinions for fear of being mocked or criticized?
A: I’m not really big on talking about politics or posting on Facebook but I feel like if I was it would be kind of a problem. I feel like I’d be attacked.
HC: So you didn’t end up voting for Donald Trump. What was it about his campaign or plans for the future that made you not want to vote for him?
A: I actually voted for Hillary. I think his policies about immigration are valid but the way he wants to go about it doesn’t make sense to me. I think “the wall” is going to put us in debt and his views on tax cuts across the board are going to put our country into bankruptcy. Also, outside of his policies, he’s not a very level-headed person. But he’s definitely gone back on a lot of his promises which I guess is good but shows that he’s not super trustworthy or consistent which isn’t great.
HC: What do you think it mean to be a Republican now that Donald Trump is the person representing your party?
A: I think it’s worse to be a Republican right now because of the things he has said about women and other minorities. He makes the Republican party as a whole appear super bigoted when really a lot of Republicans don’t think the way he does. He just makes the Republican face value a lot worse.
HC: Do you feel that a Trump presidency will strengthen your ties to the Republican party or make you question them?
A: It depends on what he actually does in office. As of right now it hasn’t really impacted my views. I’m not outraged by him like a lot of people are because based on our system of checks and balances he won’t do anything horrible and he’ll be more moderate than he appeared in his campaign. There’s also the chance he doesn’t become president via the electoral college but that’s unlikely.
HC: What do you wish you could say to people who write off Republicans as ignorant and inconsiderate now that many people associate Republicans with Trump supporters?
A: I would tell them to just give Republicans more of a chance. The media makes it seem like all Republicans are bigots from the south but that’s just not the case. I try and change people’s misconceptions about Republicans by voicing my opinion in a way that represents Republicans as well-informed and compassionate people instead of the way the media portrays us..
HC: Lastly, going forward, what do you think the Skidmore community can do to be more inclusive of everybody’s political opinions?
A: I think a lot of students are quick to judge Republicans and they aren’t open to hearing opposing political opinions. Skidmore students tend to be very verbally combative and people are very vocal on social media. I think they should take the time to have honest conversations with people that are different from them even if they don’t agree.
Clearly Skidmore’s ultra-leftist campus is a lot more welcoming to some than others. So how do we fix it? I strongly believe that you cannot understand why other people think and vote the way they do without having genuine and composed conversations with them. It is easy to write someone off as disrespectful, ignorant, privileged, racist, sexist, or insensitive based on their political party. However, at least for many people, there is a reason why they consider themselves Democrats, Republicans, Independents, etc… A person’s political beliefs are deeply rooted in their past. How and where they were raised, their ethnic background, and significant life events are all factors that influence how someone votes. It is important that we discuss each other’s influential factors as young-adults lucky enough to attend an institution that fosters creative thought.
I have always been open to discussing politics with my more conservative friends, assuring them that I would not get frustrated and yell at them. However, it wasn’t until recently that I actually sat down with a few conservative friends and asked them why they considered themselves Republicans. After several long conversations, I now understand why they think the way that they do. While we might not see eye to eye on a lot of important issues, I respect their convictions and the journey it took to reach them.