Seeing through the lies
College students, like all of us, need to be able to see through the despicable use of lies by political candidates in order to use their voices for the good of their communities. We all do.
As the sun rises on the autumn equinox, we are looking forward to a peaceful Sunday. A little work outdoors, while the beautiful weather lasts. Some cooking, prepping a few things to eat during the busy workweek ahead. Fall quarter begins officially this week at my university, and it will be full of getting to know students, working on projects, supporting colleagues.
I’m planning something a little different this fall. I typically collaborate with our sustainability officer and assign a group of students to a project that will benefit our decarbonization plans. This term, my grad students will work on micromobility, focusing on possible demand for bikeshare and other programs to help our students use their cars less. I am also teaching a basic management class to undergrads that I’m refreshing after not teaching it for a few years, and our University 101 class to a group of incoming freshmen, which I’ve never done before.
In all of these classes, I’m crafting early assignments and discussions around recognizing mis- and dis-information. I’ll tie them to the course’s “content,” as we say in higher ed. Grad students need to know how to research; managers need to know the ethics of communication; and new college students need tools to sort through the flood of information available to them.
My intention, though, has nothing to do with the course subjects per se. Heading into one of the most important presidential elections of our lifetime, we are seeing the intentional and overt use of mis- and dis-information by those who seek our votes. The Republican vice-presidential candidate claimed that making up “stories” vilifying immigrants is justified to gain “the media’s attention.” This candidate’s party has not repudiated the claims about immigrants that led to bomb threats at schools, nor has it repudiated the strategy of lying to (and about) its own constituents. These are dangerous tactics that undermine democracy.
College students, like all of us, need to be able to see through these despicable tactics in order to use their voices for the good of their communities. We all do. Or we will witness the erosion of government of the people, by the people, and for the people.
Be safe and well as we transition to fall. Your voice has never been more important.
