NECC’s Global Politics Club recently took a breather between heavy subjects. Recent topics of discussion at Professor Stephen Russell’s Global Politics Club have ranged from the youthful uprising of Nepal to the heavily-broadcasted humanitarian crisis of Gaza’s siege and starvation.
Typically a student takes charge of organizing a different discussion topic each week. This week’s topic was each member’s favorite flag.
That’s not to say students took the week off —students had an opportunity to name their favorite flags, including examples from our home-state’s flag of Massachusetts, all the way to the flag from far-flung African country, Seychelles.
Student Melissa Ferris, in charge of organizing the week’s discussion topic, decided this week to take on the gentler topic of flags instead of fascism.
“Doing that was rooted in taking a little break from the heavier topics we’ve been discussing, and to find something that we can all find common ground on,” she said. This week’s break is unprecedented. “This is the first known- non-political — which I’m not even sure its non-political — known topic of the group,” said Ferris.
Even in this off-week, these students strive to strengthen their studies.
Dez Kelly, Liberal Arts major, attends the Global Politics Club frequently. “No one else in my life wants to talk about this kind of stuff,” Kelly said. They stress the need for consent in political discussions. “It has to be consensual,” they said. “Nobody else wants to have a productive conversation.”
“There was one, group session, about Israel/Palestine,” Kelly said. They described that day as a “s***show.”
This isn’t to say the Global Politics Club is just up for debate: “Disagreements can vary based on the topic, and who is present,” Ferris said. “Sometimes there is consensus, and sometimes there is different opinions “
Students come for the politics. Joe Miller, frequent meeting goer, arrived an hour early for Wednesday’s meeting. He said he wouldn’t come so often, “if it was a debate club, and filled with right wingers.”
Students report back every week with a thoughtful presentation. Students entrenched in world news and global trauma bear this weight on their shoulders. The recent Israel/Palestine discussion did exactly that. “That was the one that raised my blood pressure the most, yeah. That one took a couple days off my life, I think,” Kelly said.
NECC’s Global Politics Club focuses on worldwide events and political issues, with an emphasis on creating space for healthy debate.
“It’s rooted in informing and creating a safe place for dissenting opinions on global topics,” Ferris said.
It all comes back to inclusion: people, ideas, and anything in between. Today, that included flags, which Ferris said was a way to keep the meeting simple and give students a breather, or a chance. “A chance to use the mid semester break to lighten the mood of our club,” she said.
The club meeting came to a close, friends bid goodbye, and all hurry on with their days —now with the gift of collaborative learning and community.
“But the commonality is that we come together for creating a safe space to talk about these topics, and sharing our ideas openly,” Ferris said.
One thing that students agree on: dragons. “If I had a dragon on my flag, I’d put that everywhere,” said Izumi Marbet, Global Politics Club member.
The Global Politics Club meets every Wednesday, at 1:45 p.m. at Room 201, known as The Haverhill Commons, in the Spurk building.
