In the age of social media, students are finding their voices and making them heard in powerful, creative ways. From sparking conversations about climate change to advocating for human rights, Instagram has become a platform for students to share their political beliefs and raise awareness about critical issues. At Staples, students are leading the way, creating Instagram accounts dedicated to educating their peers, engaging in dialogue and encouraging action.
Multiple Instagram accounts have popped up in the past few weeks, each pursuing individual goals and advocating for what they believe in. The first account to be created, @staplespolitics ’25, posts content such as political cartoons, videos of politicians and X (formerly Twitter) posts related to social issues and policies.
“From the start, my goal has been to open a public political forum for discussion on all different sides, with school-wide reach,” @staplespolitics ’25 said. “Subsequently, my second goal is to be a hopeful source for people that are scared, anxious, or unhappy in the current political climate. I also want to provide a window for my more conservative followers to see liberal perspectives.”
Another account that popped up, @staplespolitics2 ’26, created their account in response to @staplespolitics ’25 and their beliefs.
“I saw there was an account highlighting a progressive perspective on events so I decided to highlight a conservative perspective on events. My hope is that my account can help inspire other students who hold a perspective not shared by the majority of Westport to feel more open about expressing their beliefs,” @staplespolitics2 ’26 said. “I believe democracy can only truly exist if we can recognize different viewpoints and see what and why people believe what they do, and this was my way of helping that happen.”
Each of these accounts have remained anonymous, allowing for civil and courteous discourse.
“People also find comfort in debating me in DMs because they don’t know who I am, and they don’t know whether or not they know me. I really feel like I’m reaching a lot of people, and of course that feels great,” @staplespolitics ’25 said.
While some of the accounts are dedicated to spreading general awareness about political action, others advocate for specific political views.
“I decided to create this account to spread my ideas about the Green Party and help educate the students of Staples,” @staplespolitics3 ’28 said. “One of my main inspirations came from the way current politicians talk about climate change.”
With the circulation of these accounts over the past few weeks, students have varying opinions about their true impact and the information that they’re spreading.
“I think that it is good for students to use their freedoms to voice their opinions online,” Hannah Ratcliffe ’27 said. “But some of these accounts are just used for debate purposes, and aren’t very informative.”
No matter the beliefs that each account holds, the students that run them hope to bring awareness to specific ideologies and encourage their peers to advocate for what they believe in.
“People need to know that no matter who and where they are,” @staplespolitics2 ’26 said, “their opinion matters and they deserve some sort of representation.”
