Youth Talk

Regardless of political beliefs, the general reaction to Donald Trump’s victory in the US Presidential Race was one of surprise.

Indeed polls predicted a landslide for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, with some regarding Trump’s campaign a massive farce. Nevertheless, we must now welcome a Trump presidency and give him a chance to succeed.

Both candidates worked tirelessly throughout the last year and, therefore, it is only fair we accept the results of the election. (On a side note, I do intend to study at an American university, so let’s hope some of his policies don’t actually get enforced.)

What fascinated me the most about the election was the immense youthful interest behind it. Indeed throughout the bus ride to school, we were all constantly refreshing our news apps to keep track on who was winning Electoral College seats during the count.

I kid you not when I say the entire bus, including the minute Y7s and Y8s, was abuzz with political discussion and our opinions on both candidates. Quite a feat given most of us had woken up at around 5.30am to catch the ride to school.

Walking into school was even more of a shock. Every single student had their eyes glued to their phone screens on the day. Groups of students were huddled around laptop screens, eagerly following the results as they came in live.

It was during my supervised study period that the official results were announced. I do have to admit the atmosphere was one of trepidation with many people openly shocked and terrified by the result.

A group of girls even burst into tears. And then came the social media explosion. Across different year groups, students were posting their opinions and reactions via Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat. (On another side note: sincere apologies to all the teachers who had to deal with the sense of restlessness on the day).

During our lunch break all anyone could talk about was the results and the campaign as a whole. Regardless of personal opinions, it was extremely refreshing to see young people engage with this matter on such a scale.

I was pleasantly surprised to see every student express some opinion and show interest. While the result might not be what was predicted, it was amazing that throughout this election young people across the world adopted critical thinking and analysis.

This is the generation of tomorrow and it is imperative we start considering our own positions.
YouthTalk