Students gathered Tuesday evening in Homer Babbidge Library to take part in a structured “Middle Ground” discussion on immigration, an event hosted by BridgeUSA UConn aimed at fostering dialogue across political differences.
The conversation followed a moderated, discussion-based format in which participants responded to prompted statements before moving into group dialogue. Topics ranged from immigration policy and ethics to economic impacts and enforcement authority, with students forming into a smaller group based on agreement before the rest of the room would join in on the discussion.
Organizers said the goal of the event was to bring together students with a range of viewpoints, rather than a single ideological group.
“We’re trying to teach people that it’s okay to hear other people’s opinions and respond, not even positively, but just making sure you hear people out,” Victoria Hamel, BridgeUSA UConn’s president and a fourth-semester political science and human development and family sciences major, said. “Our goal is just to make sure that people are talking about politics, about everything, and just know how to talk to each other even if they disagree.”
BridgeUSA UConn, which established its chapter last semester, hosts weekly discussions in addition to one larger event each semester. Tuesday’s event drew around 30 attendees, according to organizers.
Hamel said the structure of BridgeUSA discussions is designed to expose students to viewpoints they may not normally encounter in smaller or more ideologically uniform settings.
“Our usual meetings are probably a little bit more left-leaning than these ones,” Hamel said. “The more people, the more perspectives you hear. The conversations go a little more in depth.”
During the discussion, students responded to statements such as “unauthorized immigrants boost the economy,” “ICE has too much unchecked power,” “there is no ethical way to conduct mass deportation” and “it should be easier to immigrate to the United States.” Participants first indicated agreement or disagreement, moved into the circle if agreed, then explained their reasoning. After about four minutes the rest of the room joined the circle and said their opposing viewpoint, opening a room-wide dialogue.
Participants said the format helped structure what might otherwise become a fragmented or unproductive debate.
Elio Delgado, a seventh-semester political science and psychology major and vice president of BridgeUSA UConn, said the organization emphasizes communication skills as much as political viewpoints.
“I think you can have perspectives and not agree with people of a certain, like, extreme,” Delgado said. “I think that’s one of the reasons why we do these moderated discussions, is for people to have the opportunity to hear a different perspective.”
Katerina Anikeev, a sixth-semester political science and applied data analysis major and treasurer of BridgeUSA UConn, said the larger event format brought in a wider range of perspectives than typical weekly meetings.
“I think usually we get only politically motivated people who want to talk about politics,” Anikeev said. “But when you make it a larger event, you bring in more people, and I think I saw a much broader spectrum today.”
She added that while the group tends to lean center-left in the context of the broader U.S. political alignment, the Tuesday discussion included a wider ideological range than usual.
“I definitely saw a broader spectrum today, and I thought that was kind of cool,” Anikeev said.
Jacob Fagan, a fourth-semester political science major and event chair for BridgeUSA UConn, said the structured nature of the discussion made it more productive than typical meetings.
“It’s a bit more organized,” Fagan said. “We heard more voices than we usually do. We got representatives from some other clubs, but overall, I think it was more productive than the usual meeting.”
Fagan also emphasized the importance of moderated political discussion in a campus environment.
“College students can get emotional sometimes,” he said. “Moderating student discussion keeps things under control and helps people hear other ideas, as opposed to just yelling at each other.”
Fagan also spoke on being a participant in the discussion, noting that the format created a more comfortable environment for speaking.
“Whatever you believe in, it’s BridgeUSA — multipartisan,” Fagan said. “No one’s going to be looked down upon, so whatever I had to say I felt pretty comfortable saying it.”
He added that the event reflected broader campus diversity in political thought.
“A lot of times people see big universities like us as liberal hotspots,” Fagan said. “But as you saw today, we have a lot of different views. Even if it’s not the majority, it’s valuable to have different perspectives.”
BridgeUSA UConn hosts weekly meetings in addition to its larger events each semester, which organizers say are designed to encourage civil dialogue across ideological lines. For more information or to get involved, visit the organization’s UConntact page.