Op-Ed: Let’s Commit to the Gray Area

The need to prioritize understanding has become amplified in the lead-up to the 2024 Election (Image from Sebastian Bill, via Pexels)

With Election Day a mere two days away, the need for respectful and layered dialogue in a country seemingly devoid of nuance remains at an all-time high. 

Just a little over a month ago, protestors of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s presence at the United Nations General Assembly flocked to the Loews Regency Hotel, where Netanyahu was staying. On the northwest corner of Park Avenue and 62nd Street, visible from the Cook Room and other north-facing rooms, vandals took to graffiti to proclaim their support for Hamas. 

While it only takes one person to write a message, its effects are nonetheless lasting and pervasive. Everyone, of course, is entitled to their opinion, and free speech is fundamental to the fabric of our nation, but supporting an organization whose charter includes clauses to destroy the state of Israel and kill Jewish people everywhere (ADL) is not just expressing an opinion — it is enshrining a beacon of hatred. Nuance has, especially in recent months, taken a back seat to loudness and absolutes. 

Three and a half years ago, I wrote an opinion piece for The Grytte entitled “The Death of Discourse” about (you guessed it) the striking decline of respectful dialogue, and how discussions at Browning remain productive and considerate. As a senior, I am astonished that much of the language I used as an eighth-grader is still applicable, if not even more relevant now than it was then. 

Disagreements at Browning, for the most part, continue to separate positions from people and aim to streamline understanding, even if no one’s mind is changed. 

On a national level, though, as the majority of Americans are likely aware, division runs deeper than it ever has. According to The Pew Research Center, via The Listen First Project, 77% of Americans have few or no (41%) friends from the alternative political party. Additionally, 42% of American voters view the other party as “downright evil.” There are a plethora of statistics that quantify the political severance in the United States, but we also all feel it, right?

No matter what happens in terms of the upcoming election and international relations, we, as a country, need to renew our commitment to the gray area. 

It’s not helpful to blame anyone, because, in a sense, everyone is at fault. Instead, it is the responsibility of all of us to lead with our ears, and to embrace being disagreed with.