Zhu: A Letter to Conservatives
To my friends on the right:
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To my friends on the right:
This past weekend, students at the University of California, Berkeley protested “alt-right” journalist Milo Yiannopoulos’ planned talk. What began as peaceful demonstrations quickly became violent protests. A group of people — who may have been students — set fire to buildings, allegedly attacked Yiannopoulos’ supporters and advocated far-left ideas that contradict the tenets of our democracy.
One of my earliest memories of President Barack Obama was his speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, back when the Democratic Party still preached straightforward, persuasive ideologies. I was only a 6-year-old back then, but the memory of his message that night still lingers on with me. That eloquent message of optimism and hope, unity and patriotism, unselfish motives and unfaltering strength. It wasn’t even his election, but it certainly seemed so; Obama spoke for his party’s candidate — then-Sen. John Kerry — but it almost seemed he was offering his own story and his vision for the first time.
Every year, during the holiday season, I find myself constantly cringing at interactions between my generation, the next generation and the previous generation. It’s painfully unavoidable. Whether it’s discussing relationship advice, American politics or nostalgic movies, there’s always at least one time per party where I wince at some sort of awkward discussion.
For many of us, the most incredulous aspect of this presidential election cycle was the rise of Donald Trump. Never in recent history have we seen such crudity, vulgarity, pomposity and blunt honesty combined into one candidate. But perhaps more importantly, the current election has drastically changed the political landscape of the United States. Gone are the time-worn ideologies of the Democratic or Republican parties. This election has caused both parties to adopt beliefs they have not necessarily embraced before.
Recently, when my friends and I mention who we plan to vote for in the current deplorable state of American politics, we consistently use the same rationale: although we don’t like one candidate, we prefer him or her to the other one. This reasoning can sometimes make sense. It’s not always about choosing a candidate who matches every belief you hold or even most of your beliefs.
Imagine this scenario: one Sunday afternoon, two friends are in the Collis Center discussing the controversial issue of police brutality towards African Americans. One student thinks that the entire police system needs to be revamped, while the other thinks that the problem is exaggerated by the media and that there are larger, more intrinsic issues at hand. When the latter states the point that black-on-black violence takes more lives than police brutality, the former is shocked. How dare the friend state such a fact! Suddenly, the first student becomes offended, targeted but most importantly indignant, not only because that student is uncomfortable with the opposing opinion, but also because that student possesses a different view.
For years, administrators have looked student advocates against sexual assault directly in the eye and said mandatory expulsion for rape will never happen. It was too complicated. There were legal issues. Alumni wouldn’t support it. It was a nice idea, but it was ultimately out of their control.
I am a member of the Class of 2014, hailing from Grand Rapids, Mich. I am a chemistry major and government minor, music director of the Dartmouth Cords, a member of Alpha Chi Alpha fraternity, service chair of the Inter-Fraternity Council, tour guide, Trips leader and DREAM mentor. As a former Tucker Fellow, I spent my junior fall volunteering at an elementary and middle school in Ghana.