Being a democrat or republican has nothing to do with this article. I don't want to talk economic policies or social justice topics. I want to talk about good, old-fashioned American values: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We want a leader that will support these values for everyone in America. All I can hope is that the information in this article will make people question what kind of president they want and what we, as America, want to become. With Ted Cruz's recent announcement of dropping out of the GOP race, Donald Trump has become the only GOP candidate. It was already scary to have him in the running, but now as the only candidate, I am even more terrified republicans will rally around him because of their party loyalty. We have become so consumed in our labels that some people neglect to truly educate themselves on what kind of person they could be voting for. Being pressed with a certain label does not give us an excuse to be ignorant or weak. No matter your affiliation, please think independently by investigating all candidates and voting with the kind of values and visions you have for America.
Trump has gained all kinds of media attention throughout this election. I hate to give him more, but I cannot stay silence about my utter disgust with the words and actions of him and his supporters. Like I stated earlier, we want a leader who will uphold American values -- first being life, the unalienable right for all people to live life. Trump will not do that. He has repeatedly vilified minorities by falsifying facts. Trump has made a promise to build a wall at our southern border and make Mexico pay for it. He has portrayed Mexicans as rapists and criminals. Additionally, he is calling for "a total and complete shutdown for Muslims entering the United States." Trump has made sexist comments about the value of women. He has said to female reporters that they would not have their jobs if they weren't pretty. He has bashed his opponent, Hilary Clinton, by saying, "If Hilary Clinton can't satisfy her husband what makes you think she can satisfy America?" Lastly, two of his supporters beat a homeless man nearly to death because they were inspired after one of his rallies. Trump did nothing to acknowledge the horror of the event, and instead, he replied by saying his supporters were "passionate."
Trump is racist and sexist and is threatening and destroying lives by discriminating and stereotyping. He is perpetuating worn out stereotypes that some people readily fall back on because they fear change. Fear is his fire and the more we fear, the stronger he gets and the weaker America gets.
Do we really want someone who does not support the right for all people to be given the opportunity to live here? What ever happened to equal opportunity? With him deciding which lives are valuable, he is, in turn, taking away their liberty. The "American Dream" is built upon our value of liberty. If certain nationalities, religions and genders are not given their freedom to live, how are they supposed to be happy? The three American values are pillars that support the great dream. If one is knocked over, the dream falls and shatters. Right now, America is not upholding these values consistently, and Trump would be a step in the wrong direction toward a nation with strong unifying values. He is destroying the credibility of the republicans and if he is our president, he will destroy the United States of America. We had made beautiful progress to include all people in everything we do and we must keep up the momentum. Our president needs to be a strong leader with strong American values. The United States of America was once great and it can be again -- just without Trump.