AAU students and professors raised concerns about the U.S withdrawn foreign policies and violation of personal privacy after Donald Trump’s presidential re-election at the first Professors in the Pub of the semester.
Participants at the event showed apprehensions about Trump’s fitness for the role. The United States’ president prioritized domestic interests over international relations while granting tech billionaire Elon Musk access to the Internal Revenue Service’s sensitive data with little justification, causing instability felt by many U.S students.
“Being American, it really seemed like the whole world just upended in January, and when I got back to school I didn’t think enough professors were talking about the new administration in class so I was excited to hear what everyone had to say,” third year International Relations student Maggie Personius said.
Participants continued to discuss Trump’s pro-Russia stance, posing a question of whether Europe was ready to defend itself if the U.S were to leave the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Trump’s desire to annex Canada, Greenland, and Panama further heated the conversation, opening up discourses about the future of shipping and military routes as well as untapped resources— elements often associated with the wealth and growth of the U.S.
Although the topic was most pertinent to the U.S community, students from other corners of the world also expressed gratitude for the informative session.
“I come for the interesting arguments that all of the professors and students make, ” third year IR student Giacomo said. This time the topic was engaging all of us, Americans and Non-Americans”
The major complaint after this rendition of Professors in the Pub stemmed from the lack of professors’ contribution, limiting insights into the more complex topics.
“I was disappointed that more professors didn’t show up,” Personius said. “ [Professor] Hays does a great job of mediating and interjecting some dicier points but having more professors input would have been better.”
Once a month, the bustling cafe slows down and becomes an open table for lecturers and pupils to sit back with a beer and exchange ideas on various subjects. Keep an eye out for the weekly bulletins or the Student Council’s Instagram for further announcements about upcoming Meet the Professors events.
