Where Do We Go From Here? - The New York Times

Students in U.S. high schools can get free digital access to The New York Times until Sept. 1, 2021.

First, we asked you to weigh in on the biggest issues of the 2020 election, and over 12,000 of you did. Then, we asked you about the Electoral College, the presidential debates, the Supreme Court, who you hoped would win the presidency, and how you felt about the election results, and over one thousand more of you shared your thoughts.

But now that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have been elected, we’d like to hear your opinions on where the nation should go from here — and predictions for what might happen in the coming days, weeks and months.

We pose these questions in honor of a special webinar for teachers, students and community members that we’ll be running on Nov. 12 with our friends at Facing History and Ourselves called “After the Election: What’s Next for U.S. Democracy?” We hope to use your comments to inform our conversation. (See below for more details.)

First, though, read the article we feature in our Lesson of the Day for Nov. 9, “Biden Wins Presidency, Ending Four Tumultuous Years Under Trump,” an excellent overview of where we stand now. Here is an excerpt:

Appearing Saturday night before supporters at a drive-in rally in Wilmington, Del., and speaking against the din of enthusiastic honking, Mr. Biden claimed the presidency and called on the country to reunite after what he described as a toxic political interlude.

“Let this grim era of demonization in America begin to end here and now,” he said.

Without addressing Mr. Trump, the president-elect spoke directly to the president’s supporters and said he recognized their disappointment. “I’ve lost a couple of times myself,” he recalled of his past failures to win the presidency, before adding: “Now let’s give each other a chance.”

In a statement earlier in the day, Mr. Trump insisted “this election is far from over” and vowed that his campaign would “start prosecuting our case in court” but offered no details.

Students, read the article, then, tell us:

• In the video at the top of this post, Joe Biden says: “It’s time to put away the harsh rhetoric, lower the temperature, see each other again, listen to each other again. And to make progress, we have to stop treating our opponents as our enemies.”

  Can the American people do that, in your opinion? Have you seen evidence among your friends and family members, or at school, on social media or in your community, of political opponents being treated as enemies? If so, what do you think this new administration can do to help? How do you think greater unity can be accomplished?

• As of Nov. 9, when this was published, President Trump had not yet conceded the election. What, in your view, should he do? Why? What are your predictions for what will happen in the weeks of transition from now to Jan. 20, when a new president will be sworn into office?

• As you watched this election unfold — from campaigning to voting to counting all of the ballots to declaring a victor — how healthy do you think it showed American democracy to be? Why? How can we strengthen it?

• What issues and problems do you hope a new administration will tackle first? How do you hope the new president will address the issues that you care about? How do you want this nation to be different four years from now?

• Young people turned out in large numbers across the country to vote this year. What do you think teachers, parents and other adults can do to support people your age to continue to participate in democracy and understand and care about civics? Why? What, if anything, should they not do?

• In general, what hopes do you have for the next four years? What fears? Why?

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Teachers and Students, Join Our Related Nov. 12 Webinar

As we mentioned above, we hope to use some of the comments from this forum in a webinar we’ll be hosting along with Facing History and Ourselves. Join us at 7 p.m. Eastern for a lively community conversation on the question “After the Election: What’s Next for U.S. Democracy?” that will feature the Pulitzer Prize-winning Times columnist Nicholas Kristof; Martha Minow, a former dean of Harvard Law School who was named the 300th anniversary university professor, Harvard’s highest faculty honor; and the legal scholar Randall Kennedy, who is a professor at Harvard Law School.

Together we will examine what’s next for American democracy, the role of teachers and education, and the future of youth civic participation.

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About Student Opinion

• Find all our Student Opinion questions in this column.
• Have an idea for a Student Opinion question? Tell us about it.
• Learn more about how to use our free daily writing prompts for remote learning.

Students 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

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