Editorial

Ties that bind: fostering a more constructive community

By Editorial Staff

In the past few weeks, our campus has become irrationally divided, and, frustratingly enough, these differences are largely artificial. Yes, we all have different opinions, beliefs and backgrounds, but beyond all that we all share Hamilton as our temporary home. That, more than anything else, should be enough to unite, rather than divide, us in the face of individual differences. With the goals and hopes of the college in mind, we should be able to have intellectual diversity, creative differences and even arguments without tearing ourselves apart, and furthermore we ought to use these encounters with difference to better ourselves as a community. Whether you like or dislike any or all of your peers opinions, you also chose to create a community with them for a few short years. And communities above all work together to become better together; they do not give up and drift apart.

Two weeks ago, we expressed our own frustration concerning the removal of a provocative campus publication. We feel that taking away the publication was not an appropriate way of responding to their views. That said, we do not condone their consistent attempts to paint themselves as the faultless victim in both this and other inflamed situations. Both sides must hold themselves responsible. As Dean Thompson said in her all-campus email last week, “There may be consequences for the thing you say; it may make people angry. If you choose to say it, be accountable for it.”

However when we hold each other accountable we must always do so in a productive way. Neither side can declare themselves the only valid opinion on campus. We need to have informed and engaged conversations regarding our different opinions rather than hasty, aggressive reactions. Rather than rehashing the discussions of this polarization on campus, The Spectator asks Hamilton students to look around and talk to each other. A positive environment for change and evaluation only results from a culture that fosters constructive discourse. If something displeases you, as a student, alum, parent, faculty, staff, or just a casual reader, talk about it. Act through your words, and act with thoughtfulness and empathy. Do not initiate conversations without putting yourself in others’ shoes; enter conversations knowing that you are only half of the story, and be ready to re-imagine life from the other side of the table. You can only reach a middle ground by starting from two different sides, so let yourself hear the other side and then work together towards compromise. Destroying the other side will never achieve much of anything.

The more we talk about how radically separated all our opinions are in the first place, the harder it will be to begin the process of creating a community. Like it or not, Hamilton will not dissolve or resolve itself through invisible forces. Eventually we are all going to have to face our opponents and work with them towards change—not against them. By recognizing that as a community we are obliged to start working together towards constant re-evaluation, and then implementing compassionate forums for reconsideration, whether they are in print or in person, we can create a positive environment in which to foster constructive debates and a better cultural, political and societal understanding.

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