There I was, just casually scrolling down my Twitter feed, when I came across the following tweet: “Democrat stereotypes don’t apply half the time while republican stereotypes always apply.”
What?
So every Republican is an old, rich, white guy? I agree with the first part of the statement, but I don’t think stereotypes apply half the time for any group, not just Democrats.
These types of remarks are a part of the reason why Niles West seems so democratic. It is not that there are no Republicans in our school, but rather, they feel uncomfortable sharing their opinions.
Just skim through some of the political news stories the NWN has published. Most of the quotes come from students and staff supporting President Obama and the Democratic Party. The news is not biased; it is difficult to find a Republican willing to publicly comment.
So why is this? We live in a society where we have the freedom of speech and the right to believe in what we want, but is this necessarily the case at Niles West? How many times have we heard in the halls, “F*** Romney” or other derogatory phrases to put down the Republican Party? Just yesterday, I ran across an ecard that read, “Obama rhymes with ohana. Ohana means family and family means nobody gets left behind. Mitt rhymes with sh** and sh** is sh**.”
When phrases and ideas like this spread across the school, people’s ideas get shut down along with their confidence and willingness to openly express their opinions. It can be classified as a form of bullying, and it is unnecessary.
I thought it may have been a maturity issue, but apparently it happens within the faculty and staff as well.
“It isn’t easy being a republican among the teachers either… 🙂 ,” Mr. Nortillo commented previously on the NWN.
What puzzles me is that the Democratic Party stands for equality all across the board. They fight for respect toward minorites, yet many Democrats can’t display proper respect toward Republicans for their beliefs. It makes no sense.
Now I’m not saying that Republicans don’t say disrespectful things to Democrats, because some do, but here at Niles West, Republicans get the grunt of it.I understand that much of it comes from ignorant bandwagon fans, supporting Obama because everyone else is, but it is still not an excuse to belittle others.
As a high school that promotes acceptance and respect towards all races, cultures, religions, genders, sexual orientations, and political views, I propose that we step it up a notch. We can coexist, and just because you may not like Romney’s tax system or Obama’s health care plan doesn’t mean we can’t politely discuss the matters and after the fact, move on. When it comes down to it, it is just politics, and it is not as important as the relationships and influences you make during the years here. Agree to disagree, and stay classy.
John • Feb 25, 2013 at 2:22 PM
I’m a Democrat but I completely agree with you. In a liberal environment like West it’s easy for people to gang up on the conservatives. It’s a two-sided issue.
Jacob Levinson • Dec 6, 2012 at 10:33 PM
Hey i just like to say Ivana is that you are completely right. Im one of the few Republicans in school, and i even have family members who are ex-politicans. I agree that for a school that is so divserse and so acceptive of so many cultures and beliefs that if your a Republican you become outcasted. I was loud in my support for Mitt Romney in this past Election ,and i was called countless times a racist, and out of touch. I do think our teachers play a huge role in influenceing kids to follow their own political beliefs. I know many close friends that are Republicans but are afraid to speak out. The truth is that we aren’t racist, and if anyone pays attention in history class is that the Democratic party emerged from the south after the civil war, and the Republicans first came around when Abraham Lincoln was president. What Republicans care about most is to stop reckless spending and make sure that conserative values are being taught to our generation. I do however get very upset when i hear Democrats running the racism card all the time when they don’t truelly understand the true definition of racism. Both sides can argue and debate ,but i agree with you the facy that people should learn to mind and tolerate peoples political beliefs
elias • Jan 10, 2013 at 6:57 PM
Wait do you have 1st period spanish with mr.lander? I think your in my class.
Krista • Nov 16, 2012 at 4:06 PM
I agree that we should be more mature about our political comments, but I feel like you are contradicting yourself. You said that democrats and republicans often don’t follow a stereotype. But you just gave all of the democratic students at Niles West a stereotype. Not all of us scream out our beliefs and belittle Republicans for thinking differently. I haven’t heard anybody screaming “Romney Sucks,” but I have heard, “Yeah, Go Obama!” I think that this kind of positive support is acceptable. It’s freedom of speech and each of us are entitled to our opinion, which is often why the teachers let us speak out and support whoever we want to support. They usually stop us if we get out of line. The Chicago area is generally Democratic, so it is reasonable to expect a largely Democratic student body.
Ivana Kosir • Nov 16, 2012 at 10:56 PM
Thanks for your opinion, Krista. Just to clarify, this article was addressed to the people, both Democrats and Republicans, who consistently bash each other. I offer more examples of Democrats saying bad things to Republicans because, as you mentioned, there are more Democrats here at West, so naturally there are more slurs against Republicans. Although these people are only a small percentage of the political parties, they have a large effect on the community.
Also, I’m not opposed to supporting a political group- I am simply frustrated with the amount of disrespect we give one another regarding politics.
Morgan • Nov 10, 2012 at 5:57 PM
You go girl, you go. Speak the truth.