I don’t think it’s a surprising fact that most, if not all, of our opinion columnists share certain political ideologies. Honestly, I’d wager a large amount of our staff would identify as blue-ish. We don’t regularly have conservative viewpoints showcased in the Trinitonian’s opinion pages — and that’s a shame.

My personal beliefs aren’t a secret from anyone. It only takes a quick Google search of my name to find most of my values (and my deepest, darkest secrets). To nobody’s surprise, I don’t typically align with the Republican point of view.

This is why it may surprise readers that I’ve been praying for a conservative columnist like a farmer prays for rain.

Just because I’m pretty set in my beliefs doesn’t mean I don’t see value in hearing another side. There’s no such thing as a community without opposition bred within it, and I’m not naive enough to genuinely believe that everyone at Trinity is on the left.

The Trinitonian is supposed to be a pillar of unbiased journalism, of students’ voices. We exist to document this institution’s history. But sometimes, it feels like we’re screaming into an echo chamber, even when we’re making a genuine effort not to.

None of the opinion columns we publish ever have, or ever will, reflect the stance of the Trinitonian as a whole — we have editorials like this one for that purpose. But, I can see how it may not come across that way.

I know there are students on campus who have read our opinion section and thought the Trinitonian is nothing but a bunch of radical left lunatics. Maybe we are; I’m certainly not the authority on correcting you here. But it’s definitely not for a lack of trying.

I have our poor section editors reaching out to every mildly-affiliated conservative person or group on campus almost every week. I’m constantly telling our opinion editor, Riya Vankamamidi, to email the Trinity chapter of Young Conservatives of Texas (YCT) for their opinion. Editor-in-Chief Samara Gerstle and I are always insisting that our reporters don’t publish without an “opposing” point of view. But, more often than not, our efforts are in vain. We’re hit with a “No comment,” or an “I’m busy.”

It’d be so convenient for us to have an opinion columnist with a conservative viewpoint so that Riya can give Clayton Lansford a break. Lansford, junior engineering and physics double-major and YCT president, has been the constant subject of our “pretty please comment or write” emails, and I’m sure he’d like a week or election season off.

But I’d be remiss to not address why the elephants might not be in the room —  why a conservative may not want to join our staff: They’re afraid, and I get that. It takes courage to publish political opinions, penning them for all future generations to see. There are things I’ve written that I sometimes wish could be unpublished.

It’s vulnerable to put your name on something knowing that it could lead to backlash on campus or arguments in friend groups. Trinity isn’t exactly known for its robust conservative community, and I can imagine it feels isolating to hold those beliefs here.

But it is neither Sam’s nor my intention to have any set of students feeling underrepresented by our content, neither news articles or opinion columns. Diversity, especially diversity of opinion, is one of our biggest strengths here at Trinity. As annoying as it is to argue with someone of a different persuasion, isn’t it so much more interesting than silently sitting in a group of quiet agreement?

I can’t promise that you won’t get any backlash. But I can promise you that we publish columns in good faith. We would never set anyone up to be a punching bag, and we make sure all arguments published are as strong as they can possibly be. That’s our job as editors; no political ideology is exempt from it.

And if someone wants to publish a column or write a nasty comment disagreeing with you? Good. That’s the whole point. My first hate comment was a moment of pride for me. Disagreement is good; it’s an indicator that your work is sparking conversation.

So if you’re a conservative reading this editorial, thinking “Maybe… but” — stop. Reach out to us anyway. We’re hiring opinion columnists again, and we want to see your application.

If you’re afraid we’ll alter your argument, put us to the test: Write a guest column, and ask us to edit it the way we would one of our columnists’. You’ll see that the questions we ask and the edits we make only challenge your argument, not your beliefs.

The less I agree with you, the more I want your voice to be heard. Because the day anyone gets to monopolize freedom of speech on campus, or anywhere, is the day our democracy is finally dead.

*This editorial was updated on Feb. 18, 2026.