With it being election year, political tensions are extremely high. High school students have varying opinions but are concerned about what their classmates might think. Although students are unable to vote, they feel very strongly about their opinions whether sharing them with others, or keeping them to themselves.
NC is a very diverse and welcoming school overall, but when it comes to politics there are students who feel that they are not accepted by others because of their political opinions.
“Most definitely people show hatred when sharing opinions openly,” 10th grade student support specialist CJ Walker said. “Again, everybody has their own opinion and some people do not agree with it. Sometimes they can be a little aggressive with other people’s opinions.”
Schools have established environments where people tend to attack others that have different ideas and values. Students often feel unwelcome and unsafe when their ideas differ from their peers’.
Students face difficulties with their emotions and how they view other peoples’ beliefs, causing uncomfortable situations and stress while learning.
“There are lots of people who get really upset and offended by people having opinions that do not relate to theirs, ” senior Caleb Rienstra-Kiracofe said. This is a pretty big issue and makes it a difficult and hateful learning environment.”
History classes in the school tend to participate in activities that involve political conversations with students and teachers. Students share their beliefs through these conversations.
“When we start talking about the election it doesn’t really get tense, there are more conversations not necessarily tense,” AP government teacher Andy Wiggins said.
Although the government classes do not get tense, people seem to keep to themselves and not be fully honest about their political beliefs.
“I think 75% of my students share their real opinions,” Wiggins said. It is such a polarizing thing and people have such strongly held opinions and it is so much a part of our identity that you are being vulnerable when you put it out there,”
Discussing these events at school with peers makes students feel uncomfortable. They feel unable to share what they believe because of other students and their personal opinions and beliefs.
“I think everybody has a personal perspective, and I think everybody has an opinion, not being comfortable sharing that, I think that is each person’s morals and values, and whether they want to or not,” Walker said
Students believe that opinions should be welcomed, especially in a school setting.
“A lot of people are judgmental and have their own opinions,” senior Niall Gillen said. I think that people are entitled to their own opinions, and it makes them not want to listen to what others have to say. I think that this can be shown as bullying and harassment towards the people in the school.”
Students’ political beliefs tend to revolve around their family, religion and environment. This causes them to be influenced and use that to shame others with different opinions and backgrounds.
In the past, America has been built on freedom of beliefs but recently this freedom has been negatively affected. There is a divide throughout the country which is apparent in schools because of the 2024 election.
