In the weeks leading up to the presidential election, the Democrats, Republicans, and Hotchkiss Political Union (HPU) clubs are holding events to promote open dialogue and political awareness on campus.
The clubs aim to introduce students to diverse perspectives and provide information about the United States’ political landscape. The club hopes to hold election watch parties as well as post-election discussions in the near future.
On Saturday, September 21, Repubs hosted State Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding for a Q&A session. Students had the opportunity to ask about CT’s electricity issues, government funding in the local area, as well as how Senator Harding’s career as an attorney has affected his work as a politician.
The Demz are organizing a postcard writing meeting to encourage members of the local community to get out and vote. They also hope to invite a Democratic state Senate candidate to speak to the community in the coming weeks.
The clubs are also hosting events in collaboration with one another. In September, they coordinated to host a watch party of the first Harris-Trump presidential debate and debate debrief afterwards. Libby Abelow ’25, co-head of Demz, said, “The best part about events like these is that the opinions presented there help us see the candidates in a new light.”
The clubs will host a series of open discourse forums throughout the school year to spread awareness about political topics and encourage civil discourse. Last spring, Meilan Antonucci ’24 and Will Trachel ’24, former heads of Repubs and Demz, respectively, hosted the first open discourse forum with a focus on U.S. immigration policies. Since then, the political clubs have covered a variety of current political issues, including climate change and abortion.
Mr. Rick Hazelton, director of the Center of Global Understanding & Independent Thinking, said, “For about six months prior to our first open discourse forum, I met with students who felt challenged regarding open discourse on campus, and they shared their fears of being ‘canceled’ by their peers based on their viewpoints. Some students were also concerned about what they see as a power differential in the classroom, where open expression of minority viewpoints would negatively impact their standing in the academic environment.”
The open discourse forums allow students to engage with disagreement and learn how to share conflicting points of view. Abelow said, “When in the majority, people often feel they don’t need to justify their opinions, and with time, they lose the ability to do so. That’s why I believe the open discourse forums are valuable—for encouraging respectful disagreement and supporting claims.” Max Salzinger ’25, a co-head of Repubs, said, “Political opinions at Hotchkiss are mostly liberal, with few opportunities to hear conservative perspectives. The forums help provide balance.”
This year, the forums are undergoing some changes. To increase audience participation, a Google form will be sent to the student body before each session, which will allow students to propose questions that the moderators can ask the speakers. The selection process for the debates encourages all students to participate, regardless of affiliation with the political clubs. Mr. Hazelton said, “I think the way all these students work really well together—the Demz, the Repubs, and the HPU—has been the most wonderful thing.”
The first open discourse event of the fall took place on Wednesday, October 2 in the Faculty Room. Students gathered to discuss recent protests on college campuses by comparing responses from the Dartmouth and Wesleyan administrations.
