With the presidential election coming up, it seems as though Trump and Clinton are the only subjects of conversation. There is nothing wrong with that; people should be talking and contemplating the better candidate, but for some reason, millennials in particular have forgotten (or never been taught) how to correctly talk about politics and other issues. Some people have different views...can you believe that? We have become so sensitive to what others think and we often times forget that even though our best friend/significant other/family member believes something other than what we do, at the end of the day we still care about them.
I've never been someone who’s been really enveloped in politics. I grew up knowing little about what a “Republican” or “Democrat” was. It wasn't until my mom started urging me to register to vote when I turned 18 that I decided to really familiarize myself.
I’m not going to go off on a tangent about who I believe should be president or what my stance is on gun control; that’s beside the point. What I've realized from talking to others about these issues is that some people really don't know how to respectfully have a debate. Democrat or Republican, I have experienced people affiliated with both parties showcase their views in an uneducated, disrespectful way. What so many people don’t understand is that there is no such thing as a “right” opinion. If you believe that Donald Trump’s foreign policy is better than Hillary Clinton’s or vice versa, that’s great, but that’s how you feel. Someone else is going to disagree with you, and our generation needs to learn how to accept that not everyone is going to form the same opinions as you.
College is a great time to learn and experience new people and views. What I think is important is the ability to recognize someone has a different view than you, and be able to respectfully accept that. This doesn’t mean you can’t debate a topic, because that’s what the majority of politics consist of: debate. But there is no reason to make someone feel bad for what they believe in. Just because someone has a different stance on a issue doesn’t mean they're a bad person, it means they have their own opinion, which should be embraced. College is full of diverse people young and old who have all had different life experiences and I believe that is what makes college so great.
We are a mere two months from election day, which means the talk of the next president is only going to increase. What I urge you to do before participating in a debate with someone, is to have an open mind. I don’t mean an open mind in the sense that you need to agree and adopt the thoughts of others, but you should be respectful when discussing issues in order for that to be a meaningful conversation. No one appreciates someone who attacks them for what they believe in and I’m certain you wouldn’t like that either.
