A Message to Students Following the Election

 

Who is going to win today is not yet  clear - we will know who is the next president tonight or early tomorrow morning.

 

Yet we can be sure now that a significant portion of the country will be disappointed on Wednesday. They will feel angry, disappointed, disenfranchised, and isolated.  That is the sad consequence of this season.

 

Admittedly, we have not seen the best role models. Too many angry, mean spirited words have been spoken, and too few people have stood up for the larger good of this country. This has been a nasty, distasteful campaign season, and most of us are very glad it is almost over.  I, for one, do not want to hear another political ad.

 

Regardless of all that, the struggle for all of us will be to find ways to jointly move forward. To do that will be a big challenge, but I think that we have a great opportunity here.

 

You will inherit this country and will need to take responsibility for it long after Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are only names in a history book.  So you have several steps in a clear path that you can take to protect your future.

 

First of all, we will have to separate the office from the office holder.

 

When I was your age, John Kennedy was elected as the first Catholic president, and at my very white Anglo-Saxon Protestant boarding school, the thought of having a Catholic as president was a horrific  threat to many of my classmates. Fortunately, at that time I had a great history teacher, Mr. David Smith, who had us read a piece by a 4th century Roman politician named Agricola who was as discouraged as any of us about the choices of leadership, (see, things don’t change) but he made the clear point that we have to see beyond the limitations of the office holder and identify those values embedded in the office.  We need to reaffirm our respect for the democracy for which so many people have fought to protect. That is more important than how we feel about the person who lives in the White House.

 

To respect the office and the government of which the presidency is a part, we also need to seek civil debate in which we focus on the issues. We can disagree and we should disagree, but the important thing to remember is that we have an obligation to have a respectful conversation. We need to talk to each other and not at each other. We need to put past name-calling behind us. We need to rediscover the power and importance of compromise. Standing our ground and screaming at each other will achieve nothing. Because you will be the stewards of America, you need to look to that common good. The continued petty strife will only demean the best of America.

 

Finally, we need to hold our leadership to the ideals of this country. Electing public officials is only a first step. Whoever takes office needs to remember Lincoln’s words that government serves the people. Speaking up to require on-going accountability will be the best way to ensure that our leaders do their job and that we move forward.

 

So tomorrow I ask you to remember that we have to respect the office, not necessarily the office holder, that we have to continue to talk with each other about the issues, and that we need to hold our leaders accountable. In these ways you will be effective stewards, protecting the best of America.