O
n Sunday, March 8, Sen.
Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., held a
campaign rally on the Diag at
the University of Michigan in advance
of the March 10 Michigan primary.
10,000 people were in attendance at
the rally, which consisted of speeches
from local, state and national-level offi-
cials, and finally from Sanders at the
very end. The content of the speeches
touched on progressive national issues,
the Sanders campaign platform and a
uniform call to action for widespread
national reform. The speech Sanders
gave specifically spoke to issues like
Medicare for All, the Green New Deal,
eliminating student debt and making
higher education tuition-free, among
other topics. Sanders also talked about
a metaphysical “arc of justice” from
Civil Rights Activist Reverend Jesse
Jackson to U.S. Rep. Alexandria Oca-
sio-Cortez, D-N.Y., mentioning that
many people had been imprisoned or
had died in the name of “(seeking) jus-
tice.” His speech was revolutionary in
tone and the content was rife, as you’d
expect, with emotional and political
rhetoric that created audible and vis-
ible excitement among his supporters.
Indeed, the crowd was quick to react
with cheers when he proclaimed that
he’d enact socialist policies upon his
inauguration to the White House.
I spoke afterward with supporters to
gauge their impressions of his delivery,
the overall spectacle of this campaign
event and of (democratic) socialism
itself. One supporter, James, said Sand-
ers’ support for the Green New Deal
won him his support; another sup-
porter (and friend), Humza, pointed to
Sanders’ advocacy for Medicare for All
as the central issue that earned him his
support. These two prospective vot-
ers and vocal Sanders supporters also
noted that climate change was a big
motivating issue for them. I also asked
them about Sanders’ self-proclaimed
“democratic socialist” moniker: James
claimed that it shouldn’t be such a scary
word, and Humza believed that the
word “socialism” has been contorted
to such extents that it is now mean-
ingless and means whatever you want
it to mean. I also asked another friend
and unabashed Trump supporter, with
whom I attended the rally, about his
thoughts on socialism: “I think social-
ism is evil because it deprives individu-
als of the right to own their own labor
and property, as well as their freedom
from state-control over their lives.”
Between this small sample size of
Sanders and Trump supporters, there
is a clear disparity on the matter of
socialism, linguistically and politically.
Therefore, it is worth examining why
this ideology appeals so much to young
people.
A good place to start is the defini-
tion of “socialism.” According to the
Merriam-Webster dictionary, social-
ism means “any of various economic
and political theories advocating col-
lective or governmental ownership
and administration of the means of
production and distribution of goods.”
To put it more simply, it means giving
the government more power. If you ask
the most famous young socialist in the
country, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,
what it means, however, you’ll receive
flowery rhetoric in response: “I believe
that in a modern, moral and wealthy
society, no person in America should be
too poor to live.” Socialism is an ideol-
ogy that has historically left millions
powerless and in poverty to the whims
of governmental officials: however,
attach the word “democratic” and it is
suddenly the mechanism required to
solve these problems. This conundrum
begs some questions: Why are so many
young people — fans of Sanders and
AOC — attracted to socialism? Is it the
emotional resonance of instituting a
top-down effort to alleviate hunger and
poverty and other societal problems?
Is it the utopian idealism of universal
equality that endures despite the his-
torical failures of this ideology? Or does
some version of youthful ignorance jus-
tify this widespread support for social-
ism?
Certainly, there’s a romantic quality
about the concept of institutionalizing
a system that is fair and equitable, that
levels the playing field in some man-
ner so that the top 1 percent of 1 per-
cent cannot amass obscene amounts
of wealth. According to Deidra Nansen
McCloskey, professor of Economics,
History, English and Communications
at the University of Illinois at Chi-
cago, the “romantic ideals” of social-
ism make it a “cherished identity” for
youth. Young people personally con-
nect to the utopian ethos of socialism
because it connotes an improvement
upon society, leaving people better off
than before.
4
Thursday, May 7, 2020
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NEIL SHAH | COLUMNIST
Neil Shah can be reached at
neilsh@umich.edu.
The temptation of socialism
I
feel so empty this morning. No
Zoom meeting with students
to look forward to, no prepara-
tion. Classes are over.
I had to say goodbye to 55 stu-
dents on Monday and Tuesday, in
four different classes. I thanked
them and praised their hard work,
like I usually do.
I dressed up, put makeup on, did
my hair, wore my favorite earrings,
tried to find within me a happy
face for one last time in front of the
camera. Days of putting on a smile,
trying to bring positive energy to a
virtual class while confronted with
a full screen of sad faces, tired and
worried. I wanted to honor them
one last time.
At the end of class I told my stu-
dents how proud I was of them for
showing up to class every day. I con-
gratulated them on finding ways
to adapt to the craziness, for being
engaged and connecting with each
other. I told them, “No one will ever
forget what you all have been going
through and everyone will praise
you for your strength and resilience,
no matter how big or small. You
should all be very proud of your-
selves!” I also said I was sad for not
being able to say goodbye in person,
in a normal classroom. And some of
them cried.
At the end of the day, I was
emotionally drained. I closed my
computer and started weeping in
my kitchen for ten long minutes.
Nothing had prepared me for this —
never would have I imagined feeling
so sad on the last day of class. There
were times in my 23 years of teach-
ing at the University of Michigan
that were difficult — health strug-
gles, family deaths, catastrophic
events in the news — but nothing
had really prepared me for this.
I was on the phone with my
mother on March 11 when the email
came out. I had seen my students
in the classroom that same morn-
ing. I was never going to see them
again. Although I had expected the
news, I was shocked by the reality
of it all and stared at my screen,
speechless, tears streaming down
my cheeks, listening to my moth-
er’s comforting words. My children
witnessed my distress and at that
moment understood what it meant
for me to be a teacher.
The following day I started
running a marathon. Hours of
daily work, preparation and class
time. Live sessions with my stu-
dents to keep them engaged and
speaking French daily. Tons of
exchanges with colleagues via
email, BlueJeans meetings, phone
conversations. A wonderful sense
of community and collaboration
emerged but I was feeling lonely
and lost, afraid of what was coming
ahead, uncertain about my teach-
ing choices, doubting my ability to
adjust. The situation was evolving
on the hour, changes needing to be
made daily. And yet students were
showing up to class, doing all the
work, adapting to their teachers’
new technology endeavors, trying
to make sense out of this new crazy
normal.
And all of this kept me going.
Preparing my classes, going to
workshops, seeing my students
every day and connecting with
them virtually kept me sane and
helped me forget the depressing
reality. I learned so much about my
students and about myself through-
out those 40 days.
They
shared
their
personal
struggles, living situations and
experiences, their worries and
fears — I felt very connected to
them. More than ever. We were far
apart yet so close.
I lost a lot of control in my teach-
ing and realized it was okay. I could
not hear and listen to everything
students were saying and sharing
in breakout rooms. I will never
know what really happened in all
these virtual meetings, but it was
probably empowering and simply
reassuring for them to have their
own private space. I envision that
a sense of normalcy arose from
speaking privately to classmates
once again, even if the conversa-
tions drifted.
I am so thankful I live in a com-
munity that allowed me to teach
remotely, provided me with the
needed tools to make a somewhat
smoother transition and enabled
me to finish the semester for these
well-deserving students who I
will miss deeply. However, I have
witnessed inequities in students’
resources and abilities to stay con-
nected throughout the end of the
semester. Socioeconomic inequali-
ties have been exacerbated by the
current situation, not only within
different regions of Michigan, but
also in the Ann Arbor area. We
should all continue to advocate for
a fair and accessible educational
system.
Now I have to let go and conquer
this void that I feel. I am confident
I will overcome the sadness and the
sense of loss. I just need the strength
to confront the reality around me.
I feel so empty this morning
SABINE GABARON | OP-ED
Sabine Gabaron is Lecturer IV in the
Department of Romance Languages
and Literature and can be reached at
sgabaron@umich.edu.
Read more at
MichiganDaily.com