Hello, my name is Sarah Drake and I am a republican.
You wouldn’t believe how much strength it takes to say that, and how empowering it is at the same time.
Now, I know many people will be surprised by this, and a large number have already formed negative opinions of me in their minds just by reading the title of this article. I may even lose a few friends over speaking my mind. This is exactly the problem I aim to tackle. All I ask is that people read the entirety of this article before making any decisions about me as a person.
Growing up as a republican in the California education system has been one of my toughest life experiences. I can point to many instances where I felt alienated and even threatened by teachers and fellow students alike due to my political views. Merely hearing the word “republican” can paint a negative image in the heads of closed-minded people. This is not to say that liberals in general are closed-minded, just those who refuse to get to know a person in favor of judging them over a simple label.
Over the years, I have had to face multiple attacks on character from teachers sharing their political viewpoints at inappropriate times. There is no place for commentary on politics in classes that are supposed to be focused on middle-school level physics. There was even one teacher who went so far as to actually tell our class, “Democrats are just smarter than republicans.” This can be very damaging to young republicans, as they are being taught by people of authority that they are lesser than democratic students.
My initial instinct is to get angry at these kinds of teachers for using their position of power to further their personal political agendas. However, I have come to understand that a bigger problem is to blame. Republicans are increasingly being attacked for falsely believed stereotypes that don’t even apply to the majority of the party. Assuming that all conservatives are anti-gay, racist, sexist, old, rich, white “hillbillies” is just as bad as stereotyping people of color, gays, feminists, etc. These claims are baseless, outdated and tired exaggerations in a desperate attempt to belittle those who identify as republican.
Personally, I fully support the LGBT+ movement and was happy to see same-sex marriage become legal last June. Seeing people wearing hijabs on the street doesn’t make me hateful, rather I respect that they practice a different religion from me. Gender equality is as important to me as it is to the next person. I don’t see any race as being superior to others, and don’t even take it into account when choosing to associate with people. I’m not going to say I’m “color-blind,” because obviously if we have different skin tones then my eye is going to pick up on that, but I make no judgments on a person based on the way they were born. I can only hope to receive that same courtesy in return.
Being a republican doesn’t make someone a hateful villain, as much as the people who stereotype would like you to believe. I am a highly compassionate person who wants to see good done in the world. The sad part is that most of these stereotypes are being kept alive by people who preach tolerance and acceptance the most. Hypocrisy in the political world is not something unheard of, but this specific form goes unchecked by society.
Here’s an example.
Emily Humpal, a republican student at UCSB, recently posted a story to Facebook detailing some highly disturbing actions taken against her while attempting to get into the GOP convention in Burlingame, California. She wrote that she was harassed by Trump protesters, called a “white hoe,” and had other hateful things said at her alleging that she wanted to have sex with people in power for personal gain. She did not yell or fight, she “smiled and turned away.”
Her closing thoughts on the experience are chilling: “My question is how can you hold signs that say ‘stop the hate’ when you show so much hatred toward your opposition? How can you say Trump is a racist and a sexist and then turn around and call someone you do not know a ‘white hoe’?” The unfortunate truth is that she is just one of many republicans that has had to face this hypocrisy from people demanding that which they are not willing to give in return.
Being a student at Cal Poly has made me fearful to speak up in favor of my beliefs. Many democratic students here are very aggressive in their actions, and I have found myself giving into the oppressive forces in hopes of avoiding conflict. I don’t want to be put in a situation where I feel obligated to defend and justify what I believe. I shouldn’t have to validate my identity to people who believe the harmful stereotypes of republicans.
However, the hypocrisy and the lies have gone too far. The time has come where I must stand up for what I believe in.
If you are someone that asks for respect, then try giving it first. This is a two-way road that requires cooperation on both ends. Yelling and attacking each other’s beliefs is going to get us nowhere. We need to learn to accept each other’s differences. We are the youth of America, soon to inherit the country, and we need to learn to work together for the sake of generations to come.