This past Tuesday was an astonishing moment for American politics. The impossible became reality, and for half of America, it was a time for celebration. But I’m not part of that half. When it was officially announced that Donald J. Trump would be the 45th president of the United States, I was petrified. I couldn’t believe that a man who had such controversial and polarizing views was going to be the leader of this country. And one of his blatantly ignorant statements affects me directly because I am a Muslim. I practice a religion that is blasphemed by a few, but the rest of us are accused of their heinous actions, and Mr. Trump has thrown fuel on that fire that we know as Islamaphobia.
I was born and raised here in the United States. My first language was English. And I’m the one that’s supposed to be afraid of oppression?
Just like me, there are millions of Muslim-Americans who are law-abiding, peaceful citizens that have nothing but love and admiration for this country. Yet they’re the ones who are told they’re not welcome here and are given death threats? This is beyond outrageous to me, and I wish this was just a fear in my head. But it is REAL. Days after Trump won the election, a Muslim woman got her hijab pulled off in public and was told to go hang herself with it. And that’s just a few days into Trump’s victory. I am terrified from thinking about how the next four years will be.
On top of being Muslim, I am a woman as well. During his campaign, a lot of his derogatory statements about women were brought to light. And to be brutally honest, I was utterly disgusted. I am an avid feminist, so when a man who has called women pigs, ignored their privacy, spoke of them in a vulgar way, and said a woman looks better on her knees becomes the next president, I get anxious and worried. If we have a president who condones such language and grabs women without their consent, things like chivalry and basic respect for women goes out the window. I mean c’mon! He said if Ivanka wasn’t his daughter, he’d be dating her! That’s just weird.
But back to a more serious note, Trump being president makes me worry about how women will be treated in the coming years.
Despite all of his hate speech and misogynistic rhetoric, I sincerely hope that he’s different. I pray that President Trump will be nothing like campaign Trump. Because right now, hope and optimism are all we have. We can’t give into things like fear and hatred, because hatred brews more hatred, creating a never-ending cycle. But I am afraid, and I have a lot of disdain for the things Mr. Trump has said over the course of this election. However, I choose to remain hopeful for the future. And I encourage everyone to do so as well.
But hey, that’s just my two cents.
