I spent all of Wednesday in mourning. I mourned for the decades of progress our country had made. I mourned for the future of our planet. And I especially mourned for the lives of those who truly make America great.
To anyone who believes that I am being a "sore loser" or that I'm upset because "my candidate didn't win," you lack a fundamental understanding of this election. It was not just Hillary Clinton versus Donald Trump or Democrats versus Republicans. This election was a battle of ideologies. Bernie Sanders represented idealism, hope, and democratic socialism. At the beginning of the election cycle, Hillary Clinton was the embodiment of the status quo, but with the help of Bernie Sanders, her campaign adopted the most progressive platform in history and fought to preserve the basic freedoms of marginalized groups. And Donald Trump is a demagogue who utilizes regressive populism. He is a sexist, misogynist, homophobe, racist, xenophobe, and bigot. A campaign of progress lost to a man who mocks the disabled, disrespects women, discriminates against minority groups, openly promotes violence and sexual assault, and believes that climate change is a hoax.
To anyone who believes that I am overreacting or dramatizing the situation, you are part of the problem. Just because you are not personally affected by the impact of Donald Trump's rhetoric or you are not seeing it in your own community, does not mean that it is not happening. Our nation is already paying witness to Donald Trump's America. Due to Trump's victory, supporters who sympathize with his hateful sentiments now feel free to express feelings they’ve suppressed for so long. Now more than ever, they feel empowered to act on their beliefs because the president-elect of our nation sympathizes with them. His victory has led to hate speech and hate crimes towards minorities across the country, and it is utterly terrifying. If you are not devastated, if you are not enraged, and if you believe that everything is going to be fine, then you are part of the problem. If you do not feel fear for yourself in our current political climate, then you are extremely privileged. But you should fear for the lives of those who aren't as lucky and choose to stand with them.
Amongst all of this devastation, what hurts me the most is the fact that members of my extended family voted to elect Donald Trump. My family of first generation immigrants from Nicaragua voted for a man who hates minorities and wants to build a wall on the Mexican border. To the Trump supporters in my family, I am deeply disappointed and extremely hurt by your actions. I know that none of you are bad people. I understand that you are upset with the way that this country is currently being run. I understand your dislike of Hillary Clinton. And I understand that you truly believe that Donald Trump is a good negotiator who will rebuild the economy and lower taxes. As misguided as your faith in Donald Trump is, I understand why you felt that this was someone you could depend on. You immigrated into this country, started from the bottom, and achieved success in a system that worked against you, so you voted to protect the life that you worked so hard to earn. The fault here is seeing Donald Trump as a reflection of yourself. The harsh reality is that he is not the "self-made man" that he claims to be. He does not understand or sympathize with your struggles. You were never given a "small loan" of a million dollars. You immigrated to this country in search of a better life for yourself and for your family. You relate more to the Mexicans that Trump wants to prevent from entering our country than you do to him. And that is what you seem to forget. I understand that you did not vote for Donald Trump because of his hateful sentiments, but you still voted for him despite them. It truly hurts and upsets me that you heard Trump's xenophobic, racist, and bigoted views, and you were willing to overlook them for promises he made that reflect your personal interests. In hopes of paying less in taxes, you were willing to overlook rape allegations, speech promoting sexual assault, and hate towards your fellow Latinos. But you do not get to pick and choose his qualities or promises. You voted to elect Trump, hateful sentiments included, and real people are already feeling the repercussions of those actions. You have daughters, mothers, sisters, and nieces. And you are minorities. Yet, you voted against them. You voted against me. That blatant disregard for your fellow humans is something that I find hard to forgive.
To my parents, thank you. Thank you so much for not forgetting where you came from. Thank you for the sacrifices that you made to provide the best quality of life for me. Thank you for always being happy to pay your dues, and for understanding the struggles of those who benefit from them. You have instilled in me the values of compassion, humility, and concern for my fellow persons. You chose to make your voices heard, stand against hatred, and cast the vote that you believed would build a brighter future for me and all the people in this country. You are leading by example and standing in solidarity with those who feel nothing but fear. And, to you both, I am truly sorry. This is not the America that you came here for. Mama, this is not why you came to this country when you were just twelve years old and unable to speak English. Papa, you were a lawyer in Costa Rica and you came to the United States to build a better future for your children, and for you, that future began on an assembly line. You two have achieved so much in this country, and I am so sorry that on Tuesday, it failed you.
