The UNC College Republicans and UNC Young Democrats co-hosted an event on Social Security last Tuesday.
The student groups worked together to bring Free the Facts, a nonprofit organization dedicated to nonpartisan reform of Social Security, to UNC's campus. The evening went smoothly, with conservatives and liberals discussing their thoughts on Social Security and potential ideas to save the program.
It was nice to see Democrats and Republicans working together, especially in light of the deep political divide that currently exists in our country.
A study from Pew Research this year found that about 64 percent of Democrats have few to no Republican friends and 55 percent of Republicans have few to no Democratic friends. On top of that, more than 80 percent of Democrats and Republicans hold negative views of members of the opposing party, while 44 percent of Democrats and 45 percent of Republicans hold very negative views of the opposing party.
In the past 23 years, the divide between our polarized parties has grown wider. This year, 95 percent of Republicans are more conservative than the median Democrat, while 97 percent of Democrats are more liberal than the median Republican — the figures were 64 and 70 percent, respectively, in 1994.
Is it any wonder vitriol has become common in political discourse and bipartisanship have gone by the wayside?
The only way to end the negativity in political discussions is for Republican and Democratic leaders to make an effort to work together. It would go a long way for the Young Democrats and College Republicans to work together more often in the future.
Forming personal relationships across the political aisle are much easier when you see the parties getting along. The further the divide, the more we need a bridge.
