The 2024 presidential election marked a distinct shift in America’s identity and values, redefining what many believe the country to be. Today, many individuals throughout the Lick-Wilmerding High School community continue to grapple with their American identities as they prepare to face the next four years — together.
In addition to fears of the end of democracy, strong divisions between Democratic and Republican voters plagued the nation ahead of the election, which took place on November 5th, 2024. A recent nationwide poll from the Georgetown University Institute of Politics and Public Service found that more than 80% of voters believed that democracy, and America itself, were under threat by either Republican nominee and former President Donald J. Trump or Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. Further research by the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University revealed that nearly half of the electorate believe members of the opposing political party to be “downright evil.”
For many, initial anxieties have faded away, leaving only shock and sadness at Trump’s definitive victory. In September 2024, Gallup reported that a record high 80% of U.S. adults believed that the country was divided on core values, a deep rift reflected by people’s reactions to the election results.
“I feel so horrified by the election. This country has made its values clear… I am ashamed. I am saddened. I am mad and I am scared,” said Laurel Nathanson, LWHS’s jewelry and textile teacher To her and many others, Trump’s victory represents a win for sexism, racism and homophobia and a loss for activists across America. “I am blown away by the depths of hatefulness, greed and stupidity that half of this country and our incoming leaders subscribe to,” she said.
This rightward shift does not stop at the California border. Here, 72% of counties shifted Republican this year, compared to a shift of only 22% during 2022, AXIOS San Francisco reports. LWHS parent Gerald Kangelaris believes that these changes and Trump’s victory are indicative of widespread dissatisfaction with current politics and administrations.
“What we’re seeing with Donald Trump is a reaction to these fracturings of society, people not having good jobs or having to work multiple jobs to afford basics like housing, clothing or food. I don’t view Donald Trump as a direction we’re going, but more as a reaction to the problems we’ve had in the last ten years,” he said.
While discussing her American identity following the election, Nyara Afshar ’26 distinguished her personal American identity from the one she sees in our country today. “I will always call myself an American because I would never disregard my place or an immigrant’s value in this country. But I have trouble right now being proud… I am not proud of the state of our democracy and the values that the majority of voters uphold. I am embarrassed and scared of the man that this country has elected,” she said.
Mira Makan ’25, a first-time voter, has also found a way to define her identity outside of the standard. “I think that the American identity and democracy are intertwined, but it depends. Your gender identity, your sexual orientation, your race, your religion, all of those things factor into your [American] identity,” she said, noting the importance of uniquely defining one’s identity, something that Marissa Cornelius, one of LWHS’s United States History Honors teachers, understands well.
“I am proud and grateful for the centuries of activism that have gone into making [America] a more just and equal nation” Cornelius said, noting that her national pride stems from her trust in the power of activism, within communities both near and far.
For Matthew Yan ’26, the election results revealed how much of a bubble LWHS and San Francisco can be. “There are people with complete opposite views living within the same country, state or city and it’s crazy to think about. The American identity is so different for people and their differences cause the divisions,” he said. He believes that because today, different political views imply deeply contrasting values, people cannot empathize with each other.
These divisions have led to a growing decrease in American pride, a separate poll conducted by Gallup found. Yan acknowledges that many Americans struggle to identify with a unified national identity, but wants to see community-based change. “I think this election should be a pretty big wake-up call for a place as liberal as San Francisco,” he said.
And a wake-up call it was for Afshar. “I finally saw clearly, in striking statistics and alarming numbers, the effect of misinformation, media and lack of education… I saw a country polarized. I did not see my identity or values reflected in our incoming government or in the majority opinion of Americans,” she said. Afshar wants to see distinctive change made when it comes to online misinformation, which she believes holds the power to shape the minds and votes of vulnerable and uneducated people across the country. “[This election was] a call to action for me, and for all those young people who can’t yet vote, to fight for the democracy we want to see,” she said.
Another LWHS parent, Bassal Samaha believes that in addition to mass misinformation separating our country, Americans no longer take the time to understand each other’s viewpoints. “It’s going to take a long time for me to completely understand how you can cast your vote that way, but I try to read and listen to a lot of different viewpoints. Actually, this election has opened my eyes to look in more varied ways,” he said. He hopes that even if people are not able to share the same positions on certain topics, they should be able to have discussions of facts that both can accept. “We’ve always had different beliefs and people who are more conservative or more progressive. Now, we don’t share the same truths,” he stated. “But things can change, and they will change.”
Claudia Andrade, anthropology and biology teacher at LWHS may not have faith in our government, but she has trust in the next generations. “I still have hope because we have so many young people who want and need a more equitable future and will take action to create social change. My hope is that every generation to come will organize to fight for social justice,” she said.
In the midst of so much conflict and confusion, Kangelaris has not given up hope either. “I still want to fight for what I believe in, and that’s what we have to do. Just fight for what you think is right, and try to make the best of it,” he said. “And I think it’ll come out good on the other side.”
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