Photo courtesy of Katie Jewett
In light of the 2020 U.S. presidential election and its possible impacts on the members of the diverse Choate community, student groups and the administration both arranged a number of special programs on and after Tuesday, November 3, Election Day.
On election night , the cabinets of Young Republicans and Young Democrats each hosted an election viewing party in separate location. The Young Republicans watched Fox News’s election night coverage, while the Young Democrats mostly watched CNN’s coverage throughout the evening.
The leaders of the clubs aimed to provide spaces where students could gather and engage in discussion. President of Young Democrats Rory Latham ’21 said, “I wanted to have a place where the Democratic students can come together so that they could comfort one another or celebrate together as the votes were counted.”
Similarly, President of Young Republicans, Conor Brown ’22, said, “One of my chief responsibilities as the president of Young Republicans is to provide a sense of community and to provide a forum for people of a conservative disposition to express their beliefs freely on campus.”
Ashley Jiang ’22, who participated in the Young Democrats event, said, “It was nice to be around like-minded people and engage in constructive discourse with them about the election. We were all pretty nervous about the state of the union, but at least being together assured our fears that we weren’t alone.”
The Young Democrats’ viewing party lasted for two hours from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. in Lanphier Center. Due to the unexpectedly high turnout, upperclassmen gathered in Lanphier Commons while the underformers gathered in two other classrooms. The Young Republicans hosted its collective viewing party in Elman Auditorium from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Both of the viewing events allowed for spontaneous discussion to take place. Brown said, “It was as much of a social thing as it was a political thing.” For the Young Republicans, the viewing event also served as a reminder to respect other members of the community, even if election results did not go as they hoped.
Brown said, “One of the main things as a club that night was to make sure the people understand that going forward, especially when the result of the election is fully known to the American public, it is critical that we are more conscientious and respectful towards our left-leaning peers.”
He added that he felt a duty to promote more postive discourse, especially between those of difference political parties. He said, “I recognize that it is our responsibility as their friends and peers to make an effort to not antagonize them too much.”
On Wednesday, November 4, the day after Election Day, faculty and sixth-form students led over a dozen affinity and discussion spaces for members of the community.
A few of the events included “Discussing the Election: International Students’ Perspective,” “Affinity Space for Students of Color,” and “Choate for Women — Post Election Day Support.”
These spaces were provided to ensure that students and faculty felt safe and supported by the School amid one of the most divisive presidential elections in U.S. history.
Ms. Helene Ramirez Guerra, who organized the affinity space for BIPOC-identifying students, said, “I believe the conversations were helpful in helping all who participated to process how we were feeling, to find support and community, and to have tangible self-care takeaways to put into practice.”
Ms. Guerra also stressed the importance of providing affinity spaces for students of color in a predominantly white institution. “We have to remember that historically these places were not built with BIPOC people in mind, so we have to be intentional about creating spaces for our communities,” she said.
The events also served as a platform for virtual learning students who had not been able to regularly engage in political discussions on campus. Sabahat Rahman ’21 led the election discussion for international students along with Sesame Gaetsaloe ’21, Andrew Lee ’21, and Spanish teacher Mr. Sergio Lopez.
Rahman appreciated the opportunity to discuss politics with the Choate community. She said, “It was nice to talk with people about the election — especially because as a virtual student, I haven’t had many opportunities to do so in the dorm, walking between classes, and so on.”
