No politician, party or policy can save or condemn us. In the wake of election results that may put many of Ithaca College’s community members at risk, we need a reminder that our civic duty does not end or begin with Election Day. Caring for your community goes beyond the polls. The editorial board urges readers to hold space for each other’s emotions, each other’s lives and the many complexities that make up being a person in this world. Sometimes the most revolutionary act that you can do is to take care of yourself in the face of a world that wants you to disappear.
What The Ithacan endorses is this: community care, collective action and the practice of paying attention to each other. Fighting this system looks like taking action. It also looks like taking care of each other, resting and recuperating. All reactions and responses to this — fear, sadness, anger, exhaustion — are valid. Especially for people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, immigrants, women and other marginalized groups, this is a familiar but terrifying political precipice.
The Ithacan supports the rights of its community to do more than survive. We do not support any policies enacted by any administration that takes action against marginalized community members.
When you’re ready, find an organization you care about that is doing good work. Donate to it. Offer your services as a volunteer. Those in power want you tired, complacent and despairing; do not give in to this model of thinking forever. Instead, donate to your local independent bookstore. Instead, volunteer with nonprofit mutual aid organizations. Instead, get your boots on the ground. Now is the time to step up for each other and for the rest of the world. Welcome discomfort. Challenge it, throughout your time at Ithaca College and beyond. This is how we learn.
Many news organizations did not endorse a candidate for president. Many news organizations did. In the coming days and weeks, there will be responses, analysis and interpretations of the results. Be wary of a world that attempts to place blame instead of reaching for solutions, especially one that employs scapegoat tactics toward minority groups. Now is the time to come together, not to be reduced to our differences.
The idea that the electoral system is a race is a false metaphor and a false dichotomy. There is no finish line. We keep running. We keep moving. The world keeps spinning, and we keep paying attention to it. We keep holding it accountable, no matter who is in office.
As a journalistic entity, the position The Ithacan holds is this: we will continue to uphold the standards of accuracy, independence and integrity even in the wake of continued change. We will do as we always have done — try our best as students and journalists to make sense of the world, to inform the public and to create a space for conversation. No matter who is in power, that goal does not change.
In New York, the passing of Proposition 1 has enshrined many equal rights into the state constitution. The first openly transgender Congressional representative has been elected in the United States. Many states rejected abortion bans. But writ-large, the country has shifted further to the right. Many Democrats were defeated, and many of those who were running embraced right-wing talking points across the nation. It is endemic of a nation that was built on colonial land, a nation deeply divided and embroiled in conflict. But this type of political turmoil is not new, although it may feel more urgent at this moment.
With the changing political landscape comes a time of deep uncertainty for Americans. This is a time where the work of journalists continues to be a necessary and important task. Whether the results of the election were Harris-Walz or Trump-Vance, the response is the same: the purpose of journalism is to pay attention to the world. The purpose of journalism is to hold accountable all political figures, all people in positions of power. The purpose of journalism is to uplift those voices that may not have been heard. As journalists, we must pay attention, and engage others to pay attention as well. While the work may feel insurmountable, now is a moment to regroup. No journalist is perfect, but we ask that you hold space for both accountability and trust.
Process your emotions and allow space for them. After that, stay critical and demand that your voice is heard. Promote peaceful, healthy debate and conversations about the best ways to hold the government accountable to its people. Work with each other, but do not act out of hate or violence. As college students, the answer is to keep learning, to educate ourselves and to listen to each other. When the system fails, we must look closer to home and see what change is in our power by fortifying community efforts.
