The recent months have been filled by screaming voices asking for justice on both sides of the political spectrum. Fires have been started and not just literal fires made by angry people wanting change for their side. The fires are burning brighter than ever and each side of politics, right or left, is adding fuel to the flames that are spreading like wildfire over this nation.
Democrats and Republicans seem to be more at war than usual with all the national events occurring and hearing them so passionately debate one and another. It caused many to wonder how we
as a country got this way when our motto as a country is ‘United we stand, divided we fall.’
America has a history of political division since the starting dates of this country. One of George Washington’s precedents was to not develop parties, which we did fairly quickly after he made the statement. The two party system now tends to be the major cause of the division in the United States.
The 2020 election fueled more fires and made the division even wider. The main cause of action was the immediate dislike of the candidates from both parties and a phenomenon of a competition with who was the better candidate. More movements also created division between the two parties such as Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter, Stop Asian Hate, etc. which highlighted the differences between the two parties. The two candidates running in 2020, Joe Biden and Donald Trump, were now seen by the public as either a villain or hero that could solve the political issues that were coming to the forefront of America during the time of their campaigns.
The 2020 election ended with Joe Biden as the winner but this outcome was controversial and it created even more tension between the parties. Trump supporters didn’t believe the election was fair and not counted correctly while Biden supporters believed the opposite. This debate led to a riot at the Capitol on January 6, where Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in protest of the election. This event added perspective that both groups weren’t being heard by the other group by the left reacting to George Floyd’s death and the right reacting to Trump’s loss in somewhat comparable ways.
The United States seems to be settling down as of recently, but we still see the reflections of what has happened in previous years in our state, town, and even neighborhood. In the town of Irwin, we have had a Trump rally and we have had a Black Lives Matter protest as well.
Lily Jarosz
“I think that the best way to begin to respect others’ political opinions is just to establish a dialogue. Create safe spaces within the schools and within classes where people can share their views without being afraid of being criticized,” said Lily Jarosz, senior at Norwin High School and organizer of the Irwin Black Lives Matter Movement. “Having these discussions and seeing the human being’s beliefs helps to establish that political maturity.”