Dear Editor,
I am a freshman at Rocky Mountain College and the treasurer of Young Americans for Freedom which is a club that was established on campus this school year. It is a national, non-profit organization that is a project of the Young America’s Foundation. Young Americans for Freedom chapters work to promote the principles of strong national defense, free enterprise, individual freedom, limited government, and traditional values on high school and college campuses. Our chapter at Rocky continues to grow and progress even though we have faced some challenges as a group.
On January 31st, there was a “No Hate in Our State” event that addressed white nationalists on campuses and in the state. Two other YAF members and I attended the lecture and were verbally attacked by a man in the audience. I was wearing a Trump hat with the Presidential Seal in the front, Dylan Council was wearing a “Border Patrol” hat, and Isaac Clotfelter was wearing a MAGA hat. After discovering who the speaker would be and what his political views are, I was concerned that someone at the event was likely to bash Trump or conservative views in general, and I wanted to be there to show my support of conservative values and our president. There is a misconception that a MAGA hat represents white supremacy and my goal was to convince at least one person that a MAGA hat certainly does not condone such intolerance.
During the question and answer session of the speaking event, an older man in the audience stood up and yelled at us in front of everyone saying, “Thank you for coming. I hope you’ve been educated. I’m white, too, okay! You are not better than anyone else! Get it through your heads!” The majority of the audience then proceeded to clap and laugh at his verbal attack. I feel that we were successful in convincing him that a MAGA hat does not condone white supremacy because we did not retaliate after being wrongfully humiliated and instead spoke with the man after the event. Dylan explained that we are conservatives and not white supremacists. The man then began to repeat some of what he already proclaimed in front of the entire audience and said, “I believe that we are all the children of God, and I believe that there is no one who is superior to the other.” I then told him that I agree, and I would like to think that he truly heard me and understood that we are not white supremacists, nor are most good-hearted conservatives who wear those hats.
I believe the division in this country is a result of lies such as these. I am not a white supremacist. I am a Christian and believe in kindness towards all races. The man who singled us out knew nothing about us. This is the type of hatefulness and intolerance we are trying to stop. He saw our race and our hats and instantly believed we were white supremacists. What if we were a different race? Would he have called us white supremacists then? MAGA hats are not exclusively worn by white people. A MAGA hat represents our president’s motivation to establish equality and make this country a safe place for all Americans. It represents an America that is economically strong and truly great for all Americans. President Trump is not a racist nor is there evidence to suggest that Dylan, Issac and I are.
The speech itself was informative and taught us about a pressing issue in the state. White nationalism is certainly something to be concerned with, and it should not be a politicized issue. The majority of conservatives are loving, accepting people, and unfortunately the media tends to portray conservatives differently. Our club encourages people with differing opinions to engage in discussions with us, and we will continue to provide opportunities for students to voice their thoughts. For anyone interested in hearing more about our YAF chapter and the events we will be hosting in the future, such as bringing Katie Pavlich to speak, feel free to email us at yaf@rocky.edu.
Emily Kokot,
Rocky Student
Billings
