TOWNSHEND — A senior at Leland & Gray Union Middle and High School will be meeting U.S. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, after being named one of the winners of an essay contest.
Ely White, 18, of Townshend, penned the essay about political division in the U.S. as part of a class on current events. Submitting the essay was one of the final assignments.
"The future of our democracy depends on our ability to bridge divides and prioritize unity over partisanship," White wrote. "We must rebuild trust, restore faith in our institutions and create a government that serves all Americans. Change begins with us — and we call and act for a system that brings us together, not tears us apart."
Sanders runs the State of the Union contest each year. High school students from Vermont write about "the most pressing issue" in the U.S. and their essays are reviewed by a group of educators who select 15 winners, White said.
"Then you get to go meet with Bernie," he said. U.S. Rep. "Becca Balint is going to be there, too."
The U.S. president delivers a State of the Union speech to Congress every year "to report on the state of our country and outline priorities for the coming year," according to sanders.senate.gov/vermont/students/stateoftheunion. Sanders "knows that real change and new ideas can come from everyone — not just those in power — which is why he invites Vermont high school students to write a 250 to 500 word essay focusing on what they believe is a major challenge facing our country, and how they would solve it."
White said he wrote the essay in December or January before the State of the Union address, but the divisions between the Democratic and Republican parties were "definitely evident ... more than ever" during the March 4 address by President Trump. The meeting originally was set for March 8 but had to be rescheduled.
White begins his essay by quoting Abraham Lincoln saying, "A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
"Speaking solemnly of the dire state of division in the United States leading up to the Civil War, it is now over a century later that his words resonate once more," White wrote. "Political polarization has grown in the past decade in the United States, transforming healthy debates of ideas into an endless battle of 'us' against 'them.' Division has infiltrated into all facets of American life, a political landscape where compromise is rare and partisan loyalty is prioritized. This deepening division threatens the ideals of our democracy, making it nearly impossible to address the critical issues that face our country today."
In the essay, White advocates for ranked choice voting and reforms to the primary system. He sees the former encouraging "candidates to appeal to broader ranges of voters rather than just their base, incentivising politicians to take moderate stances rather than extreme party-driven positions."
"Reforming the closed primary system by adopting open or top-two systems would force candidates to appeal to a broader electorate, reducing the influence of extreme partisanship and encouraging more moderation," he wrote.
White also advocates for the integration of civic education and media literacy into schools and communities. That could "work as a grassroots solution in helping individuals evaluate information and recognize bias in misinformation and ideological chambers," he wrote.
White said he thinks "looking back at history is a good way" to prepare for the future and present. He described being troubled by observing political divisions in his extended family and as a young person online.
His plan is to study politics and governance in college. He has applied to American University and Drexel University.
