When I turned 18, I didn’t run out of the house to get a rebellious tattoo, and I didn’t purchase loads of lottery tickets just because I could. Instead, on my 18th birthday, my overriding thought was, “I am voting in this election.”

So, after celebrating this milestone, I sat down to research presidential candidates by re-watching debates, scrolling through candidate profiles and reading articles. After rigorous research, I came to a conclusion.

  At lunch a few weeks ago, the topic of the election came up in conversation. People shared their opinions, and I shared mine. I proudly announced that I had decided to vote for a Republican candidate.

The mood changed and everyone around the table stared at me in silence. The person across from me suddenly had to run to the library to print something, and the person next to me immediately lost her appetite for mac ‘n’ cheese. The rest of the lunch was terribly awkward and many of my friends tried to avoid making eye contact with me.

        Throughout the past decade, our community has continuously voted to put Democratic candidates in office who tend to think more liberally in terms of economic and social issues. Of course, this is not a problem, but it is indeed a pattern that makes me stand out among the majority of people in our community. The true problem lies in the lack of acceptance of deviating thoughts from the Northbrook norm. 

At Glenbrook North, many students pride themselves in their ability to recognize and support diversity. I would even go as far to say that our student body prides itself in its ability to foster individual thought in the classroom.

To quote from our own Spartan Creed, a GBN student “tolerates and supports individual expression.”

But what about outside the classroom? In terms of the future of our country, is there room to think differently without being frowned upon?

A few days ago, I decided to find out. I approached one of my friends who was not aware of my conservative views and asked her why she judged Republican students in a demeaning manner.

She answered, and I quote, “Because I can’t stand people who are racist, sexist and homophobic.”

I am definitely not racist. I am a complete feminist and I am not even close to homophobic. Just because I see a certain path for a better future for our country does not mean I am any of those things. I came to my own conclusion based on my personal values and hours of research, but I am still negatively singled out for being different.

        Our student body is so focused on being politically correct and so quick to falsely accuse someone of being racist, sexist or homophobic, that many students don’t have time to take a step back and actually think about the political issues underlying the surface-level dialect. In the minds of too many people, “bad” has become the new definition of “Republican.”

        If there was one right way of viewing the future of our country, it would have been decided already. Political debate comes from differing and equally valid methods of improving the lives of our citizens. So instead of shutting down perspectives outside of the bandwagon, seek to understand them. Even if you don’t end up agreeing, feel free to debate it.