OPINION: Trying to see world through clearer lenses

Regardless of political affiliation, we all form our opinions in different ways. The lens you see the world through isn’t mine, and mine isn’t yours. This fact is especially stark in North Idaho politics. 

Here, we have a problem seeing the world through other people’s lenses. That trust deficit is going to keep hurting many of the things we love, specifically our community college, libraries, schools and tourism. 

As a predominantly Republican region, most people in North Idaho see the world through Republican eyes. You’ll likely trust the neighbor who shares your loathing for President Biden over the unknown teacher or librarian whose job was just put in peril by recent legislation.

What would happen if before deciding our opinions, we tried seeing the world through a different lens? 

It’s natural to assume that someone who shares your values will encourage you to vote for people who also share those same values. However, this natural tendency allowed an unqualified board to be elected at North Idaho College. 

Heroic teachers and administrators are doing their best to keep this beloved community institution thriving, despite the “KCRCC Three” bringing it to the brink of disaccreditation.  

The tendency to trust Republican politicians over people led the Community Library Network Board down the road of litigation and financial ruin. While strong in political opinions, the Republican-suggested board members are weak on board governance knowledge. 

In short order, they have eliminated Juneteenth (a federal holiday) from their staff schedule, misunderstood open meeting laws, and stirred up enough potential litigation to repulse most insurance companies. 

On the state level, our inability to see things through another lens is gutting public education. 

Last week, Coeur d’Alene School District sent a letter to parents saying that in order to close a $6 million state-created shortfall in funding, they might have to close Borah Elementary and eliminate 67 positions (including administrators and children’s librarians). Most of these positions will be eliminated through attrition — people choosing not to return to their jobs next year. 

We’ve asked a few educators if we could see the world through their lens for a moment. Many are just exhausted by the uncertainty of Idaho’s investment in public education. The “will I or won’t I have a job in two years” situation is unsustainable for people who need to put a roof over their heads and food on the table. 

In March, we had the opportunity to see the worst of Coeur d’Alene through the eyes of Black tourists: visiting University of Utah basketball players. 

When they shared that racial slurs and expletives had been hurled at them through car windows, many of us reacted with horror, proclaiming that “This is not who we are.” But many locals with ties to White Nationalism didn’t believe the visitors. Their lens saw the incident as exaggerated, or even imagined. 

This horrible experience made Idaho an international headline for all the wrong reasons. It was the textbook definition of PR disaster for any tourism authority. 

When deciding our opinions on racism or racist events, why are we so hesitant to believe Black people and so quick to believe Republican politicians? 

For years, local NAACP leaders have been clawing their way toward better conversations about race. And yet, when that organization’s president says, “It comes as no surprise that Coeur d’Alene is again making regional and national news for the wrong reasons. I experience similar racist slurs and profiling daily,” we turn away? 

While our White Republican or Democratic goggles might be a convenient way to see the world, and a shortcut when deciding our opinions, the lens can get a little muddy — especially in our polarized world of political mudslinging. 

As our community collectively barrels toward the May 21 Primary Elections, consider carefully who you trust and why. Before deciding who to trust when forming your opinions, consider putting on a different set of lenses. What you see might make you think differently about your political opinions. 

By expanding our vision and seeing the world through different lenses, we can collectively build a More Perfect Union in North Idaho.

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Evan Koch is chairman of Kootenai County Democrats.