On Spirit Week’s USA Day, what did you expect? Students with red, white, and blue shirts? What you may have not expected was the sheer number of shirts and hats depicting the wearer’s political views. Or maybe you did?

Ever since the elections in 2015, it seems that more high school students had political opinions; and this trend continues to today. High school is a time where political views start to develop. One of the main factors in a person’s political opinions comes from political socialization, which for students happens right in school. Students become more aware of what is going on in the world around them and are equipped with the knowledge of their parents political aligning to form opinions on said issues. These opinions are often shared throughout the school day, which showcases a students political leaning.

For some students, USA Day on October 2nd was a perfect time to represent their political views. But, this was going too far in showcasing political values, because while school is a place where students should be allowed to discuss these ideas, there is no reason to disrupt a day with the political clothing. Whether a student was wearing a MAGA (Make America Great Again) hat or a Hillary shirt, someone would be upset or angered by the opposition of their views. Some students may see shirts that depict slandering of their views my feel like the article of clothing is a threat against on them. This creates problems and disrupts the classroom, which goes against the Ward Melville dress code. Some can argue that the students are just exercising their first amendment rights of freedom of expression. But this expression should not take away from other students learning or threaten their feelings.

Overall, the concept of USA Day is developing into more of a political field where people are defending and battling their beliefs against others. The political discourse disrupts classrooms and halls, and who knows how much worse it’s going to get. Students need to remember what this day is truly about,  a day to unite under our flag; not to be divided based on our political views.