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The Student News Site of Saint Louis University

The University News

The Student News Site of Saint Louis University

The University News

Red, white and SLU: Students on the issues

Red%2C+white+and+SLU%3A+Students+on+the+issues

With the 2016 election wrapped up, four students offered their views on several of the most heavily discussed issues of this election cycle. The students featured are juniors Margeux Wilhite, Andrew Willett, Cody Dow and Elizabeth Daly. They were asked to share their views on immigration, gun rights and abortion in order to help gauge where SLU students fall on the political spectrum.

Junior Cody Dow, who is from Dallas and is studying computer science with a minor in Spanish:

IMMIGRATION: I’m all for it. refugee immigration, I think we should take in doses. We should review them before they come in. I think we should not build a wall with Mexico. As a Texan, I see more open immigration affecting the economy in a positive way.

GUN RIGHTS: I just think all the gun violence is outrageous. If someone is on the no-fly list, then they definitely should not be allowed to buy a gun.

ABORTION:  I don’t think that anyone should have a say in it besides the woman, and in some cases the victim, [about] whether or not she should keep the baby. When it gets past a certain point and the woman knowingly conceived the baby, I don’t think its morally right for the woman to abort the baby. Ultimately, it should be up to her.

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HEALTHCARE: I can’t say that I feel like I am well enough informed on this topic to make a sound comment.

FINAL COMMENTS: In this election, I think of the quote, “If you are 20 and not a Democrat, then you’re heartless. If you’re 40 and not a Republican, then you’re thoughtless.” I think Hillary’s ideals line up with the Jesuit morals of everyone helping each other.

Junior Elizabeth Daly, president of the SLU Students for Life and a double major in education and theology:

IMMIGRATION: Borders are simply ideological and they should only help and not hurt. We are a nation of immigrants, and we cannot forget that. We can’t just suddenly turn our back on that heritage. If helping the refugees means opening our borders, then that is what we need to do.

GUN RIGHTS: I am not for strict gun control because I believe people should be able to be armed.  I guess when it comes to buying guns, we need to look at making guns harder to get, because that could potentially prevent a mass shooting.

ABORTION: Abortion is always a complete injustice and that is why it is such a big issue.  I think that the only way that it should be allowed is when there is absolutely no other way to save the life of the mother. I think it is really important to admit crisis pregnancies can’t be solved by abortion. It is through education.

HEALTHCARE:  I think that there are some issues with universal healthcare, especially when it comes to issues of conscience. It is very risky for our country to require its citizens to violate their consciences. Universal healthcare is a great idea in its mission to help the most vulnerable.

FINAL COMMENTS: SLU’s social justice-minded mission has helped me to step outside of my bubble that I was brought up in. It has helped me to think more broadly of how my Catholic faith goes far beyond Mass on Sundays.

Junior Andrew Willett, who is double majoring in neuroscience and Spanish, has hopes of attending medical school after graduating from SLU:

IMMIGRATION: I’m really for immigration. They’re coming to America for a better opportunity. It’s not like they’re trying to come here and take away from American culture.

GUN RIGHTS: Guns terrify me. I do understand why someone could want them for recreational purposes. I have a lot of friends who hunt. I think the easy accessibility of them is very alarming. I do think as many regulations as possible should be put on them as soon as possible.

ABORTION: My main concern in areas like abortion and the death penalty lies in my hope that my government would put the value of the human life as their utmost priority.  When different things take away from the value of the human being and present easily accessible opportunities to terminate a life, that’s where it worries me. But I also don’t think I have any right to tell a woman what she can do with her own body.

HEALTHCARE: I think that anybody that suffers from a serious medical condition should have treatment. On the other hand, I think the people providing the care should have financially stable lives. Even though, that shouldn’t be a driving reason for someone to go into a field like medicine. I think there should be quite a change so that doesn’t even have to be discussed.

FINAL COMMENTS: This election has really confused me and angered me. I think that Trump has exposed a whole lot of bad and has said a whole lot of bad things. There is also a lot that Hillary stands for and I don’t take pride in. The situation further confuses me because this is my first election away from home. I am not wholeheartedly behind either candidate.

Junior Margeux Wilhite, a native of St. Louis County, who is double majoring in English and political science and minoring in women’s studies:

IMMIGRATION: Without immigration, there is no American dream. We were founded on refugees seeking religious freedom. So who are we to blockade that hundreds of years later?

GUN RIGHTS: I think that buying a gun should be hard. You should have to go through a lot of steps before a gun could be in your possession. There should be background checks.

ABORTION: I believe that it’s a woman’s body. A woman’s decision. Whether that be because of any reason. I think that it should be an absolutely acceptable area of women’s healthcare.

HEALTHCARE: I think that universally free healthcare is a great idea, and I think that implementing Obamacare was a great first step in that.  But I feel like it needs to be revised. We shouldn’t just get rid of Obamacare and nix the whole thing. We should start by trying to fix what we have and provide more and more free healthcare to those who need it.

FINAL COMMENTS: This is the first presidential election that I can vote in. As a political science major, I always want people to vote. Sadly, though, I don’t really want my friends who are voting for Donald Trump to vote.

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