Class Clout Conundrum

I watch the underclassmen and I can’t help but feel bad. The first two years in high school are not necessarily harder: class load is generally easier, the pressure of post-high school plans seem distant, and life is still pretty much stagnant. Not much changes. However, the one thing that changes at lightning speeds as an underclassman is the social dynamics of class clout.

Ruthless and unforgiving climbing of the social hierarchy is like a sport for those who are not yet old enough to have the inherited coolness of an upperclassman. From the countless thirst traps clogging the Instagram feeds of many to partaking in traditions such as froshing/paddling at the year’s final spodie, underclassmen will do anything to gain the temporary respect of the older high school hotshots (of who are peaking in high school as we speak) and to win the clout competition.

Don’t get me wrong, my primary years walking the hallowed halls of Roosevelt High School were consumed by popularity building endeavors. Constantly seeking the praise of others, if I wasn’t called an “icon” at least once a day, I was nothing.

Now, as I push my way through the hordes of 2021 & 2022’s I have noticed this phenomenon in the younger generations and have come up with a solution to cure this class clout conundrum.

My message to the younger students who are struggling to gain popularity and “coolness” is this: stop caring about it. The less you care about your social wealth, your clout account will grow. I am telling the absolute truth and it comes from experience. Replace your worry about how many people know your name, with the quality of the people that know your name. Furthermore, be nice. The most popular people in this school are some of the nicest, most congenial students who are working to make people like them, not know them.

I know I may sound like a haughty, arrogant senior, but it comes from a place of love for you lost, young souls. When I was a freshman, I thought I was the most grown person. Seriously, no one could tell me nothing. But as I have come to find out, this is not the case; I am an ever-evolving person who continues to figure out what and who I am.

As you grow throughout these years as a roughrider, you will change in ways you never thought possible and by senior year, everyone will have changed so much that those who were the most popular freshman will be the most laid-back, not so clout-conscious senior who is loving life.

If you take one thing from this article it’s this: be yourself, be nice, and “clout” will come your way. People seek authenticity and want to be around those who are themselves every day so stop being something you are not for the benefit of coolness.

Graphic By: Sadie Favour