This presidential election was the first one that I, as a 21-year-old, was able to vote in, and you bet I exercised that right. I requested my absentee ballot, filled it out and overnight-ed it to my home state Florida, hoping that it would make a difference.

Come Election Day, I flipped on CNN and vehemently watched the poll statistics pour in, only to find myself utterly shocked as Trump’s votes skyrocketed and Clinton’s stagnated. Finally calling it quits at 1:45a.m., I, like many Americans, woke up the next day with a heavy heart.

Having grown up in south Florida and going to college in Boston, I have always been surrounded by progressive people, most of whom are anti-Trump. So, the day after the election when my Facebook newsfeed was filled with countless despondent and sorrowful posts that expressed fear, encouraged acceptance, provided support and promised solidarity, I just wanted to cry. I did cry. And I don’t cry. Ever.

Honestly, what happened, America? You say you want to make America great again, but how are you supposed to do that without every voice being respected, represented and safeguarded? We are not a homogenous people – not even close – and to think that a man who belittles women, directly offends several races, doesn’t fully support the LGBTQ community and has a temper like none other has been chosen to rule our country is truly frightening.

Now please understand that this is by no means a jab at what political party you stand for. I respect your choice, just as I expect you to respect mine. But, the glaring issue with this election is not even about politics. It doesn’t matter whether you are a Republican, Democrat, Independent, etc., because what I am talking about has to do with morals. Being President is so much more than serving as a guideline of policies. He or she is responsible for making decisions in the best interest of the country and ALL of its people; he or she is supposed to represent a country across the globe; he or she is supposed to give respect to receive it. So, if you claim to have voted for Trump because you agree with his policies, or worse, simply because you hate Clinton, you are only honing in on a sliver of what it means to be President of the United States. You have selfishly failed to look at the big picture.

While so many emotions have run through me since the election results, the prevailing ones are disappointment and frustration. I am disappointed in the apparent lack of a moral compass throughout America. More importantly, I am frustrated that I have yet to hear one solid argument as to why a person voted for Trump all while taking into consideration his other baggage – and, like I said, “Clinton is a nasty woman,” or “I like Trump’s ideas” doesn’t cut it.

I’ve seen Facebook posts and even anchors and commentators make comments like, “I know he won’t let us down,” or “He’s not actually going to do everything he’s saying.” Well, please enlighten me as to how you know that to be true. Do you make excuses for him by saying it’s just “locker room talk?” Or, and even I have tried to convince myself of this one, maybe his attitude has just been his way of working with the media to get himself into the limelight, but he doesn’t mean it seriously. Well, if all that were true, why would he choose Mike Pence, a man who just last year signed a religious freedom law that would allow businesses to discriminate against the LGBT community, as Vice President? How is it that there are rumors that Newt Gingrich, the man who supported Trump’s comments about former Miss America Alicia Machado’s weight gain, could be made the Speaker of the House? And that is just the start of the corrupt potential cabinet of Trump. Trump already won; he has the position. If this were all an image, I can’t imagine he would still be keeping it up.

Looking at the other side of the argument, if he actually is simply trying to maintain an image, that makes him an even less reassuring candidate. How do we know when he will stick to his word? How do we know that his philosophies aren’t just devices to fire up a crowd and gain supporters, only to be changed or abandoned later? How do we know what he really believes? We have to remember that just a few years ago, Trump was not a Republican, and even used to be a Democrat. And that’s fine – people are allowed to change their minds. But, as a result, Trump, unlike many of his supporters and unlike someone like Gingrich, cannot be considered a long-time conservative. Therefore, if Trump were to choose Gingrich to serve in his inner circle, he would make the statement that he is continuing to surround himself with people who appeal to his specific followers, regardless of what his own ideologies may or may not be.

And just back to the “I hate Hillary so I voted for Trump” reasoning (not that I am saying Clinton is perfect, either), if you are someone who thinks Clinton should be arrested for the email scandal, shouldn’t Trump be arrested for all the accusations of sexual assault (should they be proven true, of course)? By the way, the FBI just took a look at the latest batch of emails from Clinton and found nothing wrong with them.

So, please, Trump voters, instead of posting social media rants in which you get so defensive, mock others for doubting him and make other narrow-minded, meaningless comments, tell me how you could possibly overlook all of Trump’s flaws. Trump voters, instead of shaking your head, rolling your eyes and shutting up when you’re questioned about Trump’s bigotry, make an argument without twisting your own words around. Justify Trump as a whole with solid evidence. Prove me wrong.

Because honestly, I want to be proven wrong. I want to know that there is some valid rationality out there toward Trump’s victory. I need to believe that there is hope for truly making America, as a united country, even better. We have come so far in the last few years in terms of acceptance, tolerance and understanding, and it just kills me to see that we could be backtracking (the anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim and sexist, just to name a few, incidences that have arisen since Trump was elected are evidence of just that).

Should the Electoral College officially elect Trump on Dec. 19, I will accept him as my president because I am an American and will respect the democracy of my country. I will not let myself contribute to the friction that could further polarize Americans during a time when we so desperately need unity. However, I also expect that, no matter who the president may be, we as a country fight together to promote justice and equality for all, because let’s face it: if we don’t, there won’t be any America left to “make great again.”