As the New York Primary nears, the state’s citizens will be voting for who they want to represent their respective parties in the general election for president in November. On April 11th, both Democrat Bernie Sanders and Republican front-runner Donald Trump came to Albany to campaign and spread their messages, hoping to secure votes.

I can say with almost absolute certainty that this is the most interesting and polarizing election season that this country has seen. The stakes to determine the direction of the country and, moreover, the world have never been greater.

So, in an effort to capture the full scope and emotion that the two candidates brought to Albany, Odyssey at UAlbany felt it necessary to attack this topic from all angles. So, as you probably have already realized, Amber Spencer-Knowles and I, along with our Editor-in-Chief, Alex Tolbert, took to the Bernie Rally at the Washington Armory on Monday morning armed with notepads, cameras, voice recorders, and an overall yearning to understand the ambiance and environment of political rallies, hoping to have some questions answered.

Here is what we found.

I certainly had my trepidations when I came to the rally that cold Monday morning. Of course, I agree with Sanders’s policy, as do many millions of people across this country. However, I didn’t know who I would run into at the Washington Avenue Armory. I wasn’t sure who I would meet, if his supporters in this area were exclusively college students, hippies, or people who had exclusively low-paying jobs. I truly didn’t know who he appeals to on the large-scale regional picture, outside of my university.

Let’s just say that I saw a litany of people. I saw mothers with babies resting on their shoulders, I saw long-bearded, camo-wearing men with their small children, I saw the old, and I saw the young. I saw Black, White, Hispanic, and Asian alike. I saw men in suits and I saw boys in Adidas shirts with Jordan high-top sneakers. I saw UAlbany, Saint Rose, Siena, and RPI students. I saw reporters, who should technically remain neutral, get excited, hooting and hollering from the back of the room. I saw cameramen on the riser shake their cameras, moved. I saw it all, I saw everyone there supporting this man, but, even more so, I saw 6,000 people there buying into a hopeful, reunited America. I saw the promise that positivity can have on a collective. I learned, and had reaffirmed within me, a sense of togetherness that I hadn’t felt in my lifetime. I, along with thousands of others, felt happy that someone cares about our future and a future of benevolence.

I left shaken and searching for words to describe the environment. It was nostalgic mixed with innovative. It was traditional and progressive. It happened over an hour and a half, but all at once. It was powerful, yet swift. It was thorough and comprehensive, but modestly simple. Humility and pride found their balance in hope.

Now that the environment is set, and you have an idea of what I and 6,000 others are feeling, some substance in policy is needed. Bernie Sanders’s ideas, suffice it to say, were met with a resounding cheer.

Before Democratic candidate Senator Bernie Sanders took to the stage, there were several people who came in and spoke highly of him after all announcing their public endorsements. Julia Sheridan-Gonzalez, President of the New York State Nurses Association, the largest professional nurses union in New York, spoke highly of both Sanders and New York by saying that “We care for all New Yorkers! And because we do, and because we feel so passionate about everyone having equal access to care, our board -- our Board of Directors voted to endorse Bernie Sanders! We agree with Senator Sanders, that we need a single payer Medicare for all health care system. And we need that system now!” Sheridan-Gonzalez also went on to add that never in her lifetime has she never seen such an organized and passionate grassroots movement of people right here in New York. Other speakers included Albany, New York Assemblyman Phil Stant, Senator Bill Perkins, and humorist Jim Hightower.

Despite being from different walks of life, there were a number of things that they all agreed on. “This is the campaign we’ve been waiting for,” said Hightower. After years and years of what most deem to be political corruption, it is safe to say that many have a glimmer of hope and optimism for the campaign for Bernie Sanders as president.

While the crowd of 4,500 were excitedly anticipating the arrival of Senator Sanders, there were, of course, several who just missed the cut off for capacity. There were about 2,000 people, to be exact. Outside, Senator Sanders grabbed a microphone and began to speak with the crowd. However, not before interacting with some, shaking hands, and taking pictures with those who wouldn’t be able to see him once he was inside.

The atmosphere was nothing short of positive. People were greeting one another as if they were longtime friends. Women were openly breastfeeding their small children. There were college students who may or may not have missed class for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. In addition to those present, thousands were live-streaming the rally on social media in order to get a glimpse of what Senator Sanders had to say in relation to the current state of the nation, as well as what is going on locally here in Albany on Monday.

“Today, I have met with some people in Albany, who have talked about the incredibly high rate of poverty in the African-American community. And what the African-American community is asking me, is ‘how does it happen, that we can spend trillions of dollars on a war in Iraq that we never should’ve gotten into...that we could give billions of dollars in tax breaks to the wealthiest people in this country, but supposedly we don’t have the resources to rebuild inner-cities in America?”

This, of course, is not just limited to Albany. It affects cities nationwide who have experienced increased rates of poverty over the last few decades. Senator Sanders also went on to add to the list of things that he feels needs to change:

“...If we make it to the White House, we’re gonna change our national priorities, we’re gonna rebuild inner cities, we’re gonna make sure every community in this country has clean, drinking water. We’re gonna rebuild our roads, and our bridges, and our rail system, and [repair the] black and blue alliance of our people. That kind of investment will create 13 million good paying jobs.”

The topic of college student debt was also addressed in Sen. Sanders’ speech. Sanders noted that his campaign has “listened to the young people.” The popular belief of millennials being disillusioned by politics and the government is actually false. In fact, a poll that was done last year by the Pew Research Center saw not only the percentage of millennial interest in politics increase from 37 to 49 percent, but that they were more likely to lean left. It should be also noted that the under-30 demographic is the most diverse that it’s ever been in American history.

Sen. Sanders acknowledged in regards to college debt that:

“if all of us know that we need the best-educated workforce in the world, if we’re gonna do well in the future, why should we punish millions of people for getting an education?

We should be rewarding people who got an education, not punishing them...Today in many respects, a college degree is the equivalent of what a high school degree was 50 or 60 years ago. 50 or 60 years ago, [if] you had a high school degree, you were considered to be pretty well educated, and you could go out and get a decent day job.

Well, the world has changed, the economy has changed, technology has changed. And today the simple truth is that people need more education if they’re gonna get decent jobs...And we also have got to deal with the crisis of billions of people suffering under very high levels of student debt. That’s why I believe people with student debt should be able to refinance those loans, at the lowest interest rates they can get…”

For every time the senator addressed his sentiments about college student-debt, the crowd roared with applause and cheers from those both young and old. In-between points you could hear the crowd erupt with “Bernie! Bernie! Bernie!” periodically.

Sanders then closed out his speech, by saying “On April 19th, there is going to be a very, very important Democratic primary. And what I have learned is we win when the voter turnout is high, and we lose when it is low. Let us next week, have the highest voter turnout in the history of NY State!” The audience of the Armory began to shout with praises of approval followed with thunderous applause.

The support for Senator Bernie Sanders is indeed prevalent. The question that remains, however, is if whether or not his momentum and growing popularity are enough to sway in his favor for Tuesday’s primary.

One can only believe so, or as the majority of his voters say, #FeelTheBern.

All photos courtesy of: Alex Tolbert, UAlbany Odyssey EIC.