While political polarization reaches an all-time high in the United States, students came together last Tuesday to participate in low-stakes political discussion meant to humanize the other side. 

Alison Dagnes, professor of political science at Shippensburg University, moderated the event, titled “Political Speed Dating.” The event challenges participants to engage with their peers through open-minded listening and polite conversation. 

This was the fourth year that the event was held, according to Dagnes. “We started this in 2020, because a student of mine said, ‘I’m a Democrat, and I want to talk to a Republican’. And I said, Well, look around the classroom, man. But it was COVID, and it was really hard to meet people,” Dagnes said.

Each student selected a political topic that they felt passionate about, and got several minutes to tell their partner why that issue was important to them. Both students had the opportunity to veto a topic if they didn’t want to discuss it. 

The other person would have a chance to ask some follow-up questions before they switch roles and get to say their piece. 

At the end, students were encouraged to find something that they could agree on. That topic did not have to be political; they could find a shared interest in cars or agree on a favorite flavor of ice cream. Most of the room agreed that they hated subscription streaming services.

“It’s that kind of common ground that’s so incredibly valuable, and we miss it when we stay online.” Dagnes continued. “We miss it when we just hang out with people who look like us and think like us and act like us.”

After issues were discussed and agreements made, one side would find a new partner, and the cycle would begin again, as the speed dating framing would suggest. 

“When I would tell students that they had to get up and move to somebody else, that’s when they got mad. They got mad at me for interrupting their conversations, because they just really wanted to talk to other people,” Dagnes said. 

“I wanted people to talk about political things in a way that’s nice and in a way that’s going to bring people together,” Dagnes said about the purpose of the event. “Hopefully, what this does is it shows everybody that just because you disagree with somebody on one issue, it doesn’t make them a bad person and it doesn’t mean that you disagree with them on everything,” Dagnes said.

Even further, the event gives students potential to make new friends. “Every year, a couple people end up meeting up and they either go for a hike together, or one year, a woman taught another woman how to swim, and it was so sweet. It was just so nice,” Dagnes said.

Ideally, the event would have equal amounts of left- and right-leaning students, but this year, there was an excess of Republicans. Dagnes noted that Shippensburg is a small regional school in a rural area dominated by conservatives. 

“My problem is this canard that’s out there that says that all college students are liberal, because what that does is it gives our republican and conservative students short shrift,” Dagnes said. “We have some very smart conservatives. We have some very smart Republicans. And by assuming everybody’s a liberal and a Democrat, boy, are you not paying attention to what’s about 60% of our student body.”

Dagnes also spoke about the change in excitement over the race that has happened over the last few months. 

“It’s a happier political climate now than it was four months ago,” Dagnes said. “No shade to Joe Biden, but why would a 20 year old want to choose between an octogenarian and a septuagenarian?”

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