Today, I am shocked by the decision of the American people. I’ll be the first to admit that our choices in this election weren’t ideal. I wholeheartedly wish that I would have been voting for Senator Bernie Sanders to defeat Professional Bigot Donald Trump in the general election, but that’s not the option our nation was given. Instead, we had two unlikeable, untrustworthy, and imperfect candidates. But there was one major difference between them: Hillary Clinton has prepared for the White House her entire life and is fully qualified to serve as our president. Donald Trump is a joke of a reality TV star who bankrupted six companies, built his wealth by exploiting working class people, and has incredibly underdeveloped political policies.
While I’m confused and disturbed by the amount of people that voted against their own economic interests, I’m even more at a loss to comprehend what this means for the country I call “home.” A president is someone who represents and advocates for a nation. A president is someone who embodies our values and maintains the qualities that set the United States apart as one of the greatest countries in the world.
Yes, Donald Trump won the general election this week and is thus America’s Commander in Chief. But he is not my president.
Throughout his entire campaign--and most of his life--Trump has utilized hateful rhetoric to bully those that oppose him, condemn minorities, and create an environment of fear. On November 8th, we saw an outpour of people rush to the polls to support him. Some of these people were protest voters who sought to take down the system; some of them just really disliked Hillary Clinton; but, the rest actually believe in the things he says.
Trump has repeatedly proven his racism by: referring to Mexicans as rapists, threatening to build walls between us and Hispanics, implying that all black people are “urban” and live in inner-cities, claiming a judge was biased solely because “he’s a Mexican,” refusing to let his company rent to black people, repeatedly discriminating against people of color at his company, questioning Obama’s nationality, encouraging violence against Black Lives Matter protesters, frequently stereotyping Jews and making anti-Semitic remarks, and being so outright racist that he gained the support of every white supremacist group in America, including the KKK.
Our nation has a long history of racism and oppression, and it’s simply ignorant to deny that racism still exists just because it doesn’t affect you personally. Now, we have furthered the trend of prejudice and hate by electing Donald Trump, an act which supports not only his personal racist behavior but also promotes his wholly racist political platform.
A vote for Trump was a vote for racism. I can’t stand behind racism. He is not my president.
With both his actions and words, Trump has proven to us that he is a misogynist. He has been accused of sexually assaulting numerous women, was accused of raping a 13 year-old girl, publicly ridiculed and degraded the women that accused him of sexual assault, claimed that pregnancy is an inconvenience to employers, claimed that “you gotta treat [women] like shit,” ridiculed Alicia Machado by mocking her weight and nationality, implied that women can only be successful if they are attractive, said it’s okay to call his own daughter a “piece of ass,” implied that he would totally bang his own daughter, said that sexual assault in the military should just be expected, claimed that the success of the women competing on The Celebrity Apprentice was largely dependent on their sex appeal, said that negative media coverage doesn’t matter as long as you’ve got a “young and beautiful piece of ass” on your arm, said that Hillary Clinton couldn’t “satisfy” her husband and thus would be an ineffective president, repeatedly insulted the appearances of women like Bette Midler and Rosie O’Donnell, bragged about sexually assaulting women, made comments about Megyn Kelly’s period, and said that he can grab women by the pussy.
Furthermore, his political platform seeks to strip women of their reproductive rights and will do absolutely nothing to close the gender wage gap.
A vote for Trump was a vote for misogyny. I can’t stand behind misogyny. He is not my president.
Despite the amazing strides the LGBT community has made towards political equality, Trump refuses to acknowledge their rights as Americans. He has vowed to appoint Supreme Court justices that would overturn marriage equality, chose a running mate who is in favor of conversion therapy and thinks it’s fine for businesses to discriminate against gays, and doesn’t respect the legitimacy of transgender issues.
Trump’s ideologies about LGBTs are antiquated and discriminatory; and his presidency will surely do nothing but set back the progress we have made in this area.
A vote for Trump was a vote for homophobia. I can’t stand behind homophobia. He is not my president.
Donald Trump apparently has very little respect for the first amendment, because he has proposed banning an entire religion from our country. He once suggested that he may make Muslim-Americans register with a government database or possibly even carry around religion identification cards to set them apart. I’ll just go ahead and skip the Hitler comparison, because hopefully you’re able to see that one clearly on your own.
He has also suggested that it may be necessary to target Muslim-Americans with excess surveillance and by raiding mosques. And let’s not forget about the things he’s said about the Khan family.
A vote for Trump was a vote against the freedom of religion and a vote for Islamophobia. I can’t stand behind religious discrimination. He is not my president.
Donald Trump is a man who thinks that global warming is a hoax created by the Chinese, who promotes violence at his rallies, who promotes violence on a global scale, who favors waterboarding, who thinks he knows more about ISIS than the generals do, who spent much of his adult life avoiding paying income taxes, who can't release his tax returns for fear of being exposed, who lies with almost every statement he makes, who exploits the middle class, who is without logic, who has the temperament of a toddler, and who isn't allowed to use his own Twitter account.
Beyond these issues is the core danger of Donald Trump: his hate. Trump has created a climate of fear and anger with his constituents and poses a real threat for the concept of liberty. By definition, liberty is “the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views.” And that is exactly what Trump has proposed to strip from racial minorities, women, and the LGBT community.
This is not a refusal of the democratic system. The election process has concluded, and it’s my job to accept the results and continue fighting for what I believe is right. The people who voted for Trump have every right to their opinions. That’s the beauty of democracy. We gather together with like-minded individuals to elect a representative that fights for our ideals and interests. But I can’t allow myself to be grouped in with those that consider Trump to be their advocate. I can’t count myself as someone who is represented by hate, fear, racism, misogyny, xenophobia, Islamophobia, homophobia, misinformation, ignorance, or greed.
Yes, Donald Trump is the President of the United States of America, but he is not my champion. He is not my advocate. He is not my president.
