![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/NEXUS-35-5-PAGE-ONE-scaled.jpg\")
<\/a>\u201cIt\u2019s a little scary because I feel like either way it goes, we\u2019re screwed because I feel like there\u2019s a lot of [Democrats] that are using\u2026 abortion [support], but they\u2019re still supporting Israel, which is also killing a lot of women, a lot of people,\u201d she says. \u201cAmericans are not aware of how bad their system is, and they\u2019re not doing anything to stop it or to revolution or to do anything to genuinely change the system. They think they only have two options, and it\u2019s affecting everyone around [them].\u201d<\/p>\n
Reeve says that because we work in an interconnected capacity, the US defines the democracy that ripples into nations elsewhere.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe United States is the pre-eminent democracy in the world,\u201d he says. \u201cThey are not only the world\u2019s largest economy, but their leadership in terms of democracy, they\u2019re the first position in the world\u2026 When the American democracy seems strong and vibrant, that has a net effect around the world of supporting democracies. When the United States seems perilous or seems fractured, that has a tendency to highlight and bring fracture and have those same negative impacts in a variety of Eastern European democracies or democracies in Central and South America or in Asia. So it really has an outsized impact on the fate of if the world trending towards bureaucracy or more towards authoritarianism. And the United States now, it\u2019s not the only player in this, but it has an outsized role.\u201d<\/p>\n
Second-year University Transfer student Flynn Passey says he has seen how American political culture has stirred into Canadian culture and is anxious with what may continue to come from Republican candidate Donald Trump\u2019s policies.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really upsetting,\u201d he says. \u201cBecause Canada and the US are so close, there\u2019s easy pathway for rhetoric believed down there to make its way up here. We see that with Pierre Poilievre and a lot of his\u2026 It feels maybe disingenuous to directly compare to Donald Trump, but he does use a lot of that same rhetoric and vibes. In terms of human rights, I would definitely be concerned if Trump were to be elected into office.\u201d<\/p>\n
Community, Family, and Child Studies student Safiyyah, who asked that her last name not be used, says she believes we have already seen the consequences of Republican ideology spread further into Canadian politics.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019ve already seen that, especially with our own elections coming up next year,\u201d she says. \u201cPoilievre is not exactly a great representative for minorities, especially, speaking as a Muslim and as a racialized minority. So when it comes to Indigenous affairs, when it comes to most minority groups, his policies and the way he is is very, very close to the Republicans.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reeve argues that all political decisions make an international impact, citing climate-change policies as a major example of such cases.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a political scientist, I have to say politics and policy affects everyone,\u201d he says. \u201cBut there are certain times and places where politics or a policy choice will have long-term implications. And of course, younger people will bear that for a longer period. And we\u2019re at a critical moment in terms of climate action. And if, frankly, one of the parties wins, they\u2019re not interested in making any action. In fact, they\u2019re interested in pulling back all climate protections, essentially. And that has a pretty significant bearing on young people\u2019s future, amongst many other issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
First-year Arts and Science student Kaelan Day wants to see variety in candidates; he says that while the two-party system in the US and two main parties in Canada still stand, social and economic needs will not be met, resulting in a lack of enthusiasm for voters.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think when it comes down to the two-party system,\u201d he says, \u201ca lot of people just feel overwhelmed and don\u2019t really feel like their needs and wants are reflected in those candidates. So that could make them just not vote at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fourth-year Accounting student Ty Ferreipa says he is concerned with how Canadian image will be influenced by the outcome of the US election.<\/p>\n
\u201c[The US] reputation across the world also sneaks into us. We\u2019re North America. So the outcome of it certainly will affect our reputation,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Trump\u2019s policy that would increase tariffs on foreign goods by up to 20 percent concerns many people, including first-year University Transfer student Tyler Harvey Lange.<\/p>\n
\u201c[I]f he followed through on his tariff policy,\u201d says Lange, \u201cthat would be really devastating for Canada as we export the majority of our goods directly to America… I feel like that could be really worrying. Canada would probably hurt quite a bit economically.\u201d<\/p>\n
Likewise, second-year Economics international student Charles Yam is worried about how the US economy will interact with his home country as Trump promises to impose tariffs of 60 percent or more on goods from China.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo to international students who, like me, we may plan to [immigrate] to Canada or the US,\u201d says Yam. \u201cAnd after all, it\u2019s still Donald Trump, he\u2019s not a normal politician. Whether he\u2019s elected or not, that could mean a big change for a lot of things. For example, the Chinese-US Trade War started in [2018]… I think a lot of Chinese normal people and the businessmen feel worried about whether the US is going to have a big trade war with China. Especially in those years, Chinese economy is not going very well.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a German immigrant, Gender, Sexuality, Women\u2019s Studies instructor Karoline Guelke has observed the cultural similarities connecting Canada and the US, which has provided a nuanced perspective. She says she\u2019s witnessed a strong US social influence on Canada, which has enabled certain behaviours to cross between borders.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cMy perspective as an immigrant, too, Canada is a bit different,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s interesting how Canadians very much define themselves against the US often and say, well, it\u2019s worse down there. But whether we\u2019re talking about racism or sexism, when I think from a broader perspective, there\u2019s a huge influence that the US has\u2026 If they are moving more to the right, then we\u2019re likely to do that here, too. That\u2019s frightening. To just think we\u2019re removed from that is wrong to think. We\u2019re seeing similar right-wing tendencies here, not to that extent. I think more maybe in the realm of racism than the more sexist, anti-women, anti-trans. But those tendencies are here as well. And we are, I mean, socially, culturally, I see us quite connected. We\u2019re not isolated. So what becomes normalized there and many more right-wing groups are very connected to other groups in the States. So I think we should be concerned.\u201d<\/p>\n Guelke adds that although the Democrats may offer less threat to democracy and human rights, the social impact right-wing popularity has developed on its own is still a concern.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cTo see [Trump] as the one evil figure that we need to fight, and if he doesn\u2019t win, then all is well, I think that\u2019s naive,\u201d says Guelke. \u201cI mean, he only got into that position because that message, sadly, resonated with so many people. And so if [Kamala] Harris wins now, that seems the better choice for sure. But there\u2019s going to be a backlash, and there are issues that are not addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n First-year Arts and Science student Grace Patterson says she sees both candidates as a threat to the global political landscape and says she condemns Harris\u2019 strong support of Israel prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s ceaseless war on Palestine.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen it comes to the genocide,\u201d she says, \u201cthey\u2019ve both been extremely disappointing to me. My mom and I were watching… the inauguration and Kamala was saying all these great things about her support for the queer community. And then she goes on and just completely transitions to be like, \u2018and I support Israel.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n First-year Arts and Science student Mattigan Waldron says her anxiety for the outcome of the US election lies too in human rights. However, she says this specifically manifests in her strong concern for the future of learning.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel probably nervous, a little bit scared. Just general pent-up anxiety,\u201d says Waldron. \u201cI feel like, for myself, that\u2019s mostly regarding education, like something that\u2019s come up here that has been escalated because of some of the movements in Florida, in the States, of the book banning and what\u2019s okay in schools has just started this movement that I feel has affected here as well. And in that movement, it\u2019s brought up a lot of things going against SOGI 123, which is the Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity Act in schools\u2026 which people have been fighting against\u2026 And I just think that definitely started in the US.\u201d<\/p>\n Guelke hopes to see continuous mobilization of activism, but suggests this can be performed in smaller ways. She says there is work to be done to shift the future in a positive direction, but dialogue is crucial.<\/p>\n \u201cI think a lot is going on, and many people are feeling very overwhelmed and hopeless with the state of the world,\u201d says Guelke. \u201cSo one reaction is to just close down and focus on one\u2019s own little bubble. But I think then it just perpetuates. That\u2019s not how we make change. And there are different ways, too, of doing that. Some people feel very drawn to going out there and talking and being politically active. For others, that is just not maybe the right avenue for activism\u2026 I\u2019ve sometimes, personally, struggled with that because I\u2019m also not somebody who is on the front lines of marching out there and doing those things. But there are other ways where we can indirectly have an impact as well, whether it\u2019s even through private conversations or doing something on social media\u2026there are many different ways to be active and have a conversation. And that I think anybody can do.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As it so happens, this issue arrives six days before a decision has been made, on a heavy fall Wednesday. And with that, patient silence may grow. Or maybe murmurs stir in the narrow chambers of the individual. But, gathering voices in collection is how worlds march, how worlds grow, and how worlds stimulate change however they see fit, gathering before one land of the free unknowingly heads in backwards motion\u2014a nation and beyond forced to lie in a bed they have not made on the threshold of history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Among all the headlines, and the interviews, and the radio talks, I\u2019ve found a timid silence penetrating the conversations I share regarding the future, as if not mentioning the monster will cease to wake it. I say \u201cmonster\u201d as a stand-in for human rights, climate change, genocide, and affordability because I too do not wish […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":25947,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,320],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25951","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-october-30-2024"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25951","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25951"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25951\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25952,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25951\/revisions\/25952"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25951"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25951"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25951"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}