People tend to not want to talk about politics for fear of the inevitable disagreements and arguments that will occur. I lean very much to the left when it comes to my personal political beliefs, but that does not mean I don't respect those who have different views than mine. I will hear you out, listen to your opinions and agree to disagree. However, I find myself having a very difficult time respecting die-hard supporters of Donald Trump. There are hundreds of reasons why I will never support Trump and his hateful rhetoric, but today I'm focusing specifically on the way he treats and speaks about women.
Trump has been known for degrading and objectifying women way before his campaign for president began. He has called them "pigs," "dogs," "slobs," "disgusting animals," "bimbos," "pieces of ass," and "gold diggers," — just to name a few. He has told a female journalist that the only reason she has her job is because she's hot. He called a woman disgusting for asking for a break to pump breast milk. After Megyn Kelly challenged him with a question at the Republican debate, he implied that she was on her period. He even insinuated that he would date his daughter if she weren't his daughter. Gross. This is not him being "honest" and "blunt," as some like to say. This is sexism and misogyny in its most blatant form, and if you don't realize that, you are contributing to a culture that sees women as less than human.
On a related note, Trump has made some seriously disturbing comments about a woman's right to choose. He has publicly stated that there should be some form of punishment for women who get an abortion. It has always astounded me that a woman's right to make her own decisions is a controversial political issue. It astounds me even more that Trump said there should be a punishment for these women. He has since retracted this statement after he received enormous outrage from both sides. Bottom line is, Trump is one of the many old, white men in government who thinks he can tell me what I'm allowed to do with my body.
Perhaps the most disturbing part of all of this is that Trump has been accused of rape, not one, not two, but three times. He has been accused of raping his ex-wife, a former business associate and a 13-year-old girl. If we've learned anything from Bill Cosby, it's that we should believe women when they say they've been assaulted. Of course, Trump has aggressively denied all charges brought up against him. However, if you analyze the court documents and the witness' testimony, you will realize that these charges are credible. And with his record of being creepy and terrible towards women, these allegations are certainly not out of the blue. Trump's ex-wife, Ivana, actually used the word "rape" when describing a violent encounter she had with her husband. At the time, though,Trump's lawyer claimed that there was no such thing as spousal rape (which is extremely untrue).
Donald Trump is basically the drunk guy at the bar who yells vulgar things at women and high-fives his buddies afterwards. Except that drunk guy may very well be our next president. So please forgive me if I look upon your "Make America Great Again" bumper sticker with disdain.
