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I
I
® STAFF EDITORIAL
Student organizations must continue political engagement
HOW WE SEE IT
Elon University’s student-run political organizations must continue to host
student debates and events even after the presidential election.
In the weeks leading up to last
fall’s presidential election, Elon
University’s campus was filled with
political activism by and for stjic^nts.
Elon Political Forum held a bi-par
tisan debate featuring students from
different political organizations across
campus. Students gathered to watch
and discuss the presidential debates
in Moseley Center. Posters hung on
bulletin boards, and almost every
week there was a new debate or event
being held to discuss the election.
Elon’s student-run political or
ganizations such as College Dem
ocrats, College Republicans, Elon
Political Forum and other political
groups on campus must continue
hosting student debates, speakers
and events to encourage students to
remain politically active.
Last semester it seemed as
though there was a different politi
cal debate, rally or event on campus
every week. This excitement and
willingness to engage in difficult
political discussions should be pres
ent year-round.
Since th^electio^, it seems^hese
political organizations have lost
their momentum. Students are still
sharing posts on Facebook and
attending marches, but politically
charged conversations and involve
ment from organizations on campus
have been less frequent.
The Pendulum reached out to
several of these organizations, and
it was difficult to find out about
events being planned for the spring.
So far in 2017, they have not adver
tised any events like the ones they
advertised in the fall.
Faculty and staff have responded
to the situation through “Refusing
to Wait: Intellectual and Practical
Resources in Troubling Times,” a
one-credit, pass/fail class designed
specifically around practical action
following the election. Students
across campus have also responded
individually, gathering in groups to
attend local marches or call their
senators, but student-run political
organizations have been relatively
quiet.
These organizations must con
tinue to facilitate conversations and
political activism to maintain a cul
ture of political awareness after the
election. Now more than ever, they
need to foster room and space for
student-led conversations to discuss
disagreement across partisan lines.
It is early in the semester, so it is
understandable why these groups
have not held anything yet — but
there is no time to waste. We en
courage all students across campus
to maintain the momentum they
had in the fall.
President Donald Trump’s first 10
days in office were filled with actions,
orders and events that deserved
and required further conversation
between and among students. These
conversations should be held in an
intellectual setting with political
organizations, but these groups have
remained silent during these events.
It’s important to tackle what
these actions mean not only for
the humans affected by them, but
also for the parties that may have
supported them.
For students who are contem
plating their political identities
under the Trump administration,
events hosted by student partisan
groups can be beneficial in shap
ing more nuanced conversations
around these issues.
Though there is no longer a need
to debate about presidential candi
dates, students can still tackle issues
facing the Trump administration.
College Republicans can hold
discussions on Trump’s executive
orders or bring speakers to cam
pus to talk about the influence of
Trump’s first 100 days in office.
College Democrats can organize
rallies and events protesting these
executive orders or hold events to
discuss what Elon students can do
to protest.
Now is the time to promote
political awareness and activism.
We witnessed so much of this in the
fall, but it cannot stop there.
What may prevent an attack also prevents reunion
They say it’s not a Muslim ban.
They say it’s a safety concern. They
say this is all a preventive measure.
But while this executive order
may help prevent an attack, it is
also preventing my family from
coming to the United States.
When I was young, I always
wondered why my family in Hong
Kong never came to visit us. I
figured it was a long flight to take
and that logistically, it just didn’t
make sense.
When I got a bit older, I asked
my mom why her side of the fam
ily never came to visit. She told
me, “They do not want to come.
They hate Americans.”
I didn’t understand what that
meant. I was an American. I am
an American. And that is always
something I have taken a
lot of pride in. That is, at m
least, until recently.
In 2015, my cousin
made the poorly timed
decision to go to Eu
rope. Around the time
of the Paris attacks, he
got caught in the wrong
place, with a last name
tied to the Islamic faith.
He was stopped in
London and badgered
with hours of questioning.
He was unemployed at the time,
and that apparently made him a
person of suspicion. After hours
of exhaustive questioning, they
eventually let him go. Suffice to
say, this did not make him want to
travel again.
When talking to my uncle,
he spoke — reluctantly — about
his issues with US. travel. With
IF IT WAS SO HARD FOR MY FAMILY
TO GETTO THE U.S, UNDER OBAMA’S
LEADERSHIP, I AM TERRIFIED TO
THINK WHATTHEY WOULD HAVE TO
GO THROUGH IN ORDER TO VISIT
NOW, UNDER OUR NEW PRESIDENT.
his name, Mohammed Khan,
he is a man that cannot avoid a
“random” search. Though he was
angry when his son got stopped
in London, he was not surprised
and said that is the norm when
traveling to the United States.
It is important to remember
that these conversations all took
place before this new travel ban.
Hours of questioning to
individuals with Islam-
ic-sounding names has
been the model since
9/11. This isn’t new.
Since the attacks in
2001, my family has not
even attempted to travel
to the United States.
From stories they have
heard to the knowledge of
what will likely transpire
if they try to get here, it
is too much for them to
even think about coming.
If it was so hard for them to
get to the United States un
der Obama’s leadership, I am
terrified to think of what they
would have to go through in
order to visit now, under our
new president.
With extreme measures being
put in place to keep certain indi
viduals out of the country, I fear
my family will simply give up on
traveling here.
As someone who was at the
Boston Marathon when the
bombs went off, and experienced
that firsthand, I understand the
need for national security mea
sures to be taken.
But the fact that these ex
tremes have made it so hard to
travel that my family refuses to
come see us?
That breaks my heart.
I hope, more than anything,
that one day the fear of what
could happen will dissipate, and
that the extremes will become less
so, but that is becoming less and
less realistic.