Over the past few months the heightened emotions in regards to the election has overpowered my personal Facebook news feed like I'm sure many others. In that time I have seen people support their candidate, bash the opposing candidates, and downright dehumanize people who believe differently then they do. I hope I am not the only person who sees there is a problem with this...

The election is over. Bottom line; Donald Trump is our President-elect and he will be in office for the next 4 years. Many people are very happy about this and that is wonderful. From what I have gathered this past week some people are downright outraged at the outcome.

For those of you who wanted Hilary Clinton or another candidate in office I am truly sorry that didn’t work out in your favor. I understand you are outraged, upset, and disappointed in the outcome of the election and that is completely ok. In my opinion, it is not OK to wish Trump to do poorly governing our country. You may disagree with everything he stands for but wishing our president to do a bad job is simply foolish; It will only negatively affect us in the long run. You may have preferred any other outcome but in reality he is only in office for 4 years and in 2020 we will have another election and opportunity to put someone else in office. That is the great thing about democracy; if you don’t like the outcome of the election this is not a “forever” thing. I personally did not vote for Trump but I am hoping in those 4 years he accomplishes a lot and makes some positive changes while in office.

I also want to add that the president does not single handedly make the changes we desire to see in this country. Our entire government plays a role in making changes and so do we. If you want to make a change go out and do something. Vote for people in your local and state elections that have the same beliefs you do and advocate people to take action to promote the changes you wish to see. There is no need to move to Canada or declare that this is the end of America. Life will go on, I promise you.

I do not believe that either of the candidates are evil or have some plot to destroy the country. They both had pros and cons that they brought to the table just like every other candidate in the past. No one is perfect. When voting, you select someone who shares the beliefs in which you value most. You choose your candidate based on who you believe will represent and govern our country to the best of their abilities. You select a president based on their standings towards the policies they have on a variety of issues. Someone who wants to produce the same changes in our country that you do. Some people are passionate about global warming. Some people care about the defunding of planned parenthood. Some people have strict views towards border control and some people care deeply about the future of education in this country. Everyone has issues that are near to their heart. You chose a candidate that shares the majority of your positions on political issues. I hate to break it to you but some people don’t think the same way you do.

I am 21 years old. This was my first election and to be honest I’ve never seen so much hatred. It’s absolutely disappointing. As Americans we all want to better our country. There is no need to dehumanize people for their beliefs. No one person on the planet has the exact same views and feelings towards every issue in America. We are different people. Therefore, we are going to feel differently. This is inevitable.

The first amendment gives us the right to freedom of speech. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, “Protecting free speech means protecting a free press, the democratic process, diversity of thought, and so much more”. We all have the right to voice our opinions in regards to political matters but please do not shame someone for their views. Everyone has the right to their opinion and if you think differently than someone else that is ok, it is actually expected. I encourage you all to hear people out. Have them explain their reasoning for voting one way or another. Try to understand where they are coming from because I know I would want someone to try to understand where I was coming from. Do not shame them for believing in things that you don't agree with. They have their reasons just like you do.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that”. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

We have blamed mainly Trump for the hostility of the election but that is just an excuse. The hostility in this election was created and intensified by us, the people.

I saw the picture above on Facebook and someone commented “It doesn't start with Hillary but maybe Bernie”. As Donald Trump would say: Wrong. It is not going to start with Hillary. It's not even going to start with Bernie. To be honest, it is not going to start with any politician of any political party. Being kind has to start with all of us. We all need to make a conscious effort to be kinder to each and every person we come across. There is no politician out there who can successfully make Americans kind to one another. We need to do that for ourselves

I’d like to conclude with people are people. We are not defied by our political party or who we voted for in the 2016 election. We are more than that. Lets show people the respect they deserve as human beings. It’s time to start valuing and listening to one another. Lets make America kind again. The change starts with us.