In this month following the U.S. Presidential Election, I have been asked my opinion many times by Bolognesi. Even though the Italian citizens are not directly affected by the result of the election, President-elect Trump's policies on international relations, as well as his attitude towards the United Nations, will impact the rest of the world.
The middle school students from the school at which I volunteer had a fiery debate over the election results. One student supported Trump, and the others were interrogating him on his decision. I was impressed by how well-informed the students were on issues of American politics: much more so than American 14-year-olds. They were able to debate the merits and deficiencies of both Clinton and Trump, as well as systemic problems like racism and sexism. This makes me wonder what the differences are between political education in Italy and the United States, as it seems that American students are less knowledgeable about their own political climate than Italian students.
Either way, everyone is hoping that President-elect Trump will do a wonderful job leading the country for the next four years.
