Sixth Form Historians Attend Congress to Campus Event

Our Sixth Form historians had an exciting week by attending an online Congress to Campus, webinar organised by the Rothermere American Institute, University of Oxford, with support from the US embassy.  

The event saw two former Members of Congress – one Democrat, one Republican –discuss American politics and government offering valuable insights into how American democracy works through sharing their real-life experiences as candidates and office holders.

The event was chaired by Robert Lieberman a professor of American Politics at John Hopkins University, and touched on the polarization of the two parties in America and their hopes that the two parties can come together to tackle the current COVID crisis and begin to rebuild. Ben Chandler (Democrat Congressman 2004-2013) drew parallels between the US and UK political systems making it easier for the pupils to understand the US system, and Ann Marie Buerkle (Republican Congresswoman 2011-2013) inspired the pupils with her comments about being the first woman to hold her office saying “don’t ever let anyone tell you – you can’t do this”.

They closed with their (unsurprisingly conflicting) reflections on the violence at the Capitol building in January. The event was attended by hundreds of A-Level and Undergraduate students across the country as well as Plymouth College pupils joining from either the classroom at school or remotely from home. All of the pupils came away with a better understanding of American politics and a desire to see more debate between politicians, preparing them for their study of US civil rights next year.