Could you spice up your writing assignments by asking your students to write about antagonizing political issues?

I suggest two.

1. Why do we have for decades an unresolved immigration crisis? How can we solve it?

2. Why do Americans distrust media, and what would it take to fix it?

I wrote on both subjects extensively. It could be a provocative starting point. Then, let them find more information on their own. If they post on Medium, I will engage. Sounds like fun to me.