Brayden Stivala
Staff Writer
ESU’s College Republicans meeting returned to civil debate after an aggressive disruption at last week’s meeting.
According to University police, during last week’s pre-midterm election meeting on Oct. 29, an ESU student called ESU College Republicans members nazis, then performed obscene gestures, including a Sieg Heil and middle fingers, before leaving the meeting room.
The incident prompted a response by University Police, where police chief Edward Iandoli reminded attendees of ESU’s procedure for handling harassment.
“We follow up on these things, so if it continues on, we have a report on file to do an investigation and find out who the person is. It’s important to document that with the police,” said Iandoli.
By the end of the opening remarks of the Nov. 5 meeting, 16 students sat in attendance, though not limited to Republicans. Democrats, socialists and even anarchists were among the individuals who engaged in the meeting’s subsequent political discourse.
The discussion that followed revolved predominantly around midterm election results, prompting numerous conversations about which factors most heavily influenced the Nov. 3 democratic victories across the United States.
President of ESU College Republicans and senior political science major, Daniel Rossi, said he anticipated the turnout.
“Republicans haven’t been doing a great job,” said Rossi. “I wasn’t surprised by the results, but I was surprised by the volume of it. We had everything in our favor and we did nothing with it besides make everything worse.”
Another member also attributes the midterm election results to issues regarding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and their tactics, and thinks reformation is necessary.
“There are definitely problems with ICE. I think you need to reform it, like it was during the Obama Administration. Under Obama, it was more civilized,” says Wyatt Lenig, first-year history major and registered Republican.
Among other attendees were students who voted blue this past election, but attended the meeting with curiosity for what it may entail.
“I saw a bunch of posters and flyers, and the midterms really had me going. I was curious, and I wanted to press them further about their views and see how they hold up,” said Caileigh Greco, a first-year marine science major.
Many expressed criticisms throughout the meeting, especially regarding Republican views on ICE’s behavior and their favorability towards mass-deportation.
“It really shocked me,” said Martin Lopez, a first-year fine arts major and Democrat. “They said they don’t think ICE is profiling people, but they have literal repeated accounts. It’s a cornerstone of what’s affecting people and how people view the party.”
While last week’s heckling may have created a hostile environment for political discussion, Rossi assured us that disagreement is still invited and encouraged at the club’s future meetings.
“We pride ourselves on keeping the club open for political discussion for the students, not to reprimand anyone for their views. Last meeting we had someone do something horrible and disrespectful; this meeting we had a much more open and polite discussion,” said Rossi.