Trump is no excuse to give up
On the night of Tuesday November 8, Americans from all walks of life, including students, sat around televisions and computers watching the election results come in. Some were afraid, some were celebrating, some didn't know what to think.
But Wednesday morning, Castleton students woke up. They got dressed and went to class. They discussed the election, as classes did all across the country, but life at Castleton continued as normal. Assignments were given, tests were taken and life continued.
At other universities, including Columbia and Yale, however, classes did not continue so normally. Professors gave students the day off to recover from the stress and shock. Midterms were postponed, canceled or made optional, because students were too traumatized to focus.
If a specific student went to a professor and said they are struggling, then maybe an exception could be made. But an entire class? And these are top tier schools we are talking about. They should be embarrassed.
It makes sense to have some counseling services available, because it was a stressful election season overall, and the results might affect certain groups a few months from now. There are many individuals genuinely afraid of what could happen, or who have mental illnesses, and it is understandable that some may need help processing these changes.
But we are adults. We all feel weak at times. We all worry. But, if we can’t put one foot in front of the other and carry on even when things are tough, then we should be even more concerned about the future of our generation.
And nothing has even officially changed yet. It’s just the mere thought of what’s to come that is shutting people down.
When you’re a parent or have a full-time job, you can’t just shut down for a few days because the election was too tough on you. Your kids won’t understand, and your boss won’t accept it.
This is all part of the bigger problem of the “millennial” generation needing coddling and protection when things don’t go our way. Yes, people are scared of what can happen, but people are scared of a lot of problems around the world every day and still keep going.
There is a quote that says “Life is 10 percent what happens to us, and 90 percent how we react to it.” This election is happening to us, but we choose how to react. Giving up, complaining, crying and hating people who voted for our opponent is not going to do anything. We must keep going to the best of our ability, despite the challenges around us.
And to the professors who canceled classes at those universities, you have no right to call our generation lazy or entitled because you enable that behavior.