Turning Point USA at UWYO Gabe Saint and UWYO College Democrats President Artemis Langford will have a panel-style debate and discussion on polarizing political issues on Oct. 17 in the Union Programming Space, hosted by BridgeUWYO and moderated in part by Young Americans for Liberty at UWYO President JW Rzeszut.
This event will be hosted amidst a tumultuous time on campus. From the elimination of DEI to the recent ‘Brother Matt’ situation, the university has seen a great deal of controversy involving different political issues.
Students have been voicing their opinions at various events hosted by the multitude of political groups on campus. This has come in addition to engagement from members of ASUW. Members of these organizations are widely impactful on campus and amongst these are Gabe Saint, JW Rzeszut, and Artemis Langford. All three of these individuals are well-known on campus for their various political initiatives and social involvements.
BridgeUWYO President Ven Meester stated on why the planned debate involved these individuals, “I think ultimately what we have to look at on campus is ‘what is happening in the politics world?’ Bridge is all about bringing people together and showing we can have conversations across the aisle and Artemis and Gabriel are a perfect example of how people with entirely conflicting ideologies can have civil discourse.”
The debate will feature the two student leaders speaking on a variety of issues. When originally asked to participate in the event, the College Democrats emphasized the importance of structuring the debate around important issues and real topics rather than just rehashing the overexploited “Conservatives vs. Liberals” rhetoric that is often covered in events like these. TPUSA agreed that it would be more productive to cover these issues and focus less so on the party politics of it all and more so on the differing perspectives on polarized issues.
With the plans for the debate set, and JW Rzeszut and Hayden Mackenzie (BridgeUWYO’s Vice President of Operations), chosen as moderators, discussion was had on why this event is important.
When asked about the relevance of this debate specifically, Meester stated, “This debate is really important just because of the gravity of who we have debating. America is more polarized than ever and we are nearing election season. Having a debate like this and showing that the political clubs on this campus really care about understanding perspectives and tackling real issues instead of just talking about party politics and presidential candidates can show Bridge’s message and show that college-aged student leaders are prioritizing what matters. That’s why we named this event, ‘America First.’
Rzeszut added from his perspective, “As a libertarian, I see a lot of problems with our current political and economic systems which the current two sides of the political aisle fail to address. Part of the reason why these issues get continually overlooked is because neither side is willing to talk about them. These issues include such divisive topics as the national debt, inefficient taxation, foreign wars such as those in Israel and Ukraine, and school choice. A leading reason why both sides fail to talk about these issues is simply political polarization, there is not enough common ground between the Conservative and Liberal, or Republican and Democrat camps for them to really begin to focus on these issues that affect American’s everyday lives. This event is important because by creating a forum in which advocates can talk about the issues that are meaningful to them, we can simultaneously develop common ground, as well as identify points of tension, in order to give these issues the attention they deserve.”
Saint and Langford’s difference in views is exemplified by Saint’s quotation on why events like this matter, “It is important for our students and community to see that two different people from two radically different backgrounds can come together and engage in civil discourse. It is important for we as a people to come together and work together for our futures.”
On behalf of College Democrats, Langford offered, “College Democrats at UW looks forward to participating in this event, because we believe in the strong importance of young adults and college students be not only civically minded, but also be civically engaged.
Events like this shouldn’t be treated as some checkmate the other side of an issue or on the political spectrum, but rather an opportunity to give real thought to issues that affect every, single one of us. I hope people will attend this and events like it to get perspectives on these issues. We look forward in offering a Democratic perspective in this panel.
There is no better country than one in which its citizens take a vested interest in the world around them.”
Ultimately all parties and participants hope that the event will engage students and further the idea that regardless of views, students can discuss issues and work together to come to a place of understanding and a platform of positive change.
The event will begin at 5:00 pm and run till roughly 7:00 pm in the Programming Space, the space behind Poke’s Pub bordering the Skylight Lounge. It will feature open seating and will allow for informal discussion after.
