What started off originally as students attempting to campaign for their political candidates soon turned into a heavy tension that would weigh heavily down on the college campuses. On April 4th, 2016, the 'Chalkening' struck Dalton State College. It wasn't like we weren't expecting it to happen at Dalton State College, but a number of students had to double back and actually see this 'Chalkening' with our own eyes.

The first sign of the 'Chalkening' happened at Emory University, located in Atlanta, Georgia, on March 22nd, 2016. Around campus, there were writings done with chalk that said things such as "Vote Trump," and "Trump 2016." The students' response to this was to form a protest with signs that were saying "Stop Trump, Stop Hate,". One of the best signs to show the growing tension on that campus itself, some students even reported to the local paper, The Emory Wheel, that they felt afraid on their campus due to this.

This was the first of many incidents. Soon the 'Chalkening' spread like wildfire through the campuses in the matter of weeks, hitting the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga, DePaul University, Delta State University, and so many more colleges. However, what ignited these fellow college students to chalk up their schools was a fraternity-culture and southern-college-culture brand known as Old Row who had sent out a tweet that basically fueled the idea of the 'Chalkening' which had previously been brought up by Trump's social media director, Dan Scavino. Old Row had offered gift prizes for students who submitted their 'Chalkening' and by the end of the contest, Old Row verified that at least 100 colleges had submitted these type of pictures

At Dalton State, we sadly didn't survive the 'Chalkening'. There was a heavy tension that rested on our school that day. In this political race, separation seems to be driving a stake in a lot of our friendships. Everyone has different views and opinions, so it's expected that your roommate may not be voting or routing for who you are, and that's great. The problem comes, when things like the 'Chalkening' happens and it starts to stir up certain emotions, especially on a college campus where tensions about this race are higher than ever. But, the question is, are they practicing free speech?

One student here at Dalton State, Raven Nicole Bro said that "Personally if it's not offensive then I think they have the right to do that. That's the schools policy as well. Free speech is a right that we have been given; don't abuse that right. I don't like to get involved in politics and I don't really like learning other people's political opinions because I don't want it to change how I view that person. There is definitely tension on campus and it puts a strain on our relationships. "

However, another student, Yolanda Moreno, took a very different view of what happened at our school and is the one who took charge and washed away the 'Chalkening' at our school with a bucket of water before posting the before/ after pictures as well as her views, on Instagram.

I believe the bigger issue here is that this political race is driving us apart, as students, as communities, and as colleges. You have the right to vote for who you want, but when the political views clash, there's just certain things you shouldn't do. As a fellow college student, we should be working together to make this a better experience for us since we're in it together.