I won’t belabor the now old notion that none of what this president does is surprising; and that in itself is heart-breaking. To not be surprised is one thing, but to feel bad about echoing that feeling for fear of sounding repetitive is quite another. Nations change. They go to war, they suffer catastrophes, they innovate. But where is this nation going? It has become a staple of humanity to accept others and treat people with dignity. Yet this administration does just the opposite. How is this progress? We cannot move forward by turning our backs on people. Whether it be people of color, the LGBTQIA community or immigrants, by which this nation was founded. Everyone deserves respect and yet we don’t get it from the leader of the free world. Some voters want a return to life as they knew it; but what they fail to realize is that that America is dead and gone. That America has been slowly pushed to the back of the history books to make room for a better, more inclusive America.
Scream and yell at all the rallies you want but there’s no stopping this train. White people are about to be the minority, I am about to be the minority, and I invite this change with open arms. More people of color will assume roles of leadership whether it be in politics or anything else and this will be much needed. What good could come from those who’ve been oppressed? Well, it’s how the nation was founded, for one. Another positive would be decisions made from the perspective of empathy over greed. We cannot advance as a country if we continue to hold people back. We need to invest in education so that a child born 5 years from now will solve climate change. We need people in positions of power who understand the human condition and make policies that lift others up. The economy can only go so far, our “greatness” will only last so long if we let hate rule the day.
It’s my ability to look myself in the mirror that makes me wonder if others can’t. The Senate, the evangelicals, the base. It must be abject fear or willful ignorance, like a selective hearing of political issues, that lets a person continue to support a tyrant. Moving away from his policies, he’s also just a divisive person. Beating people down is at the core of who he is. Like the joker, he is an agent of chaos. Why on Earth would you support someone like this? Am I crazy? One need not be a patron saint but please exhibit to me you can understand the plight of others and I’ll consider voting for you. How can exclusion be a viable characteristic in a leader? This man hasn’t shown a shred of compassion for anyone suffering during this administration, whether it be hurricanes in Puerto Rico or peaceful protestors in DC. How can we expect anything of worth to trickle out of this office? We can’t and we don’t. The oversight failed us during impeachment and the checks and balances have all but allowed the country to fall into an autocracy. Whether or not this man gets reelected in November, he has won. He pillaged this nation to its very core and he is still unscathed. He just keeps winning and I’m getting tired of all the winning.
Daily I ruminate on the fate of all the enablers and beneficiaries of this administration, whether it be the crooks or his own family. But I don’t ruminate long. I’m busying myself with how we’ll recover from this. I’m overjoyed watching the world wake up and turn its back on racism and hate. Change is happening right this moment and it will plow its way forward. We must learn from these last 4 years. We’re facing big problems ahead, with poverty, climate change and hunger to name a few. We’re facing big problems, but not unsurmountable problems, problems that will require compassion and science to solve. We need new leaders who can speak for the oppressed because they understand that oppression. Change is happening right now and it’s leaving the man in the White House on an ever-shrinking island. One where the white man feels safe, where the flag is of the Confederacy and facts mean nothing. I hold my head high knowing everything Trump says and does contradicts my own beliefs. I know that my anger is a good thing, it’s pushing me to be more involved. It pushed me to write this. I can’t wait for the day I get to press the button next to “Joseph R. Biden” because that means something too. It means I’m saying no. It means I’m standing up for what I believe in. The new America is coming and it will be ruled with love, not hate.
