This has definitely been a controversial election. While it has caused quite an uproar, it also has required us to work together and to join peacefully.
"True peace is not merely the absence of tension, it is the presence of justice."
- Martin Luther King Jr.
Recently, at my college, we had a peaceful protest for human rights. At the protest, there were people of many different ethnicities, genders, political views, and cultures, and they all united together as a community to support each other. Best of all, they did it without hate towards their opponents.
The protest was made better by the fact that the Police department escorted and rode alongside the peaceful march, to make sure that we were safe. They told the leader of the protest that they were willing to provide any assistance if they needed it. This communication and cooperation between communities of all different types created a protest that was unlike any other.
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace"
- Jimi Hendrix
While some people looked towards rioting, the students at Saint Martin's University looked toward one another and worked with each other, knowing that they all had one common goal. This is simply to be seen and treated like a human, no matter who they voted for, what their sexual orientation is, or what ethnicity they are. While many others have joined in the peaceful protest movement, we should further encourage the more people of our nation to do things like this and to actively be peacefully communicating with other groups. By understanding and reaching out to each other, we provide a climate of peace and thus are able to work with each other efficiently to advocate for each other's rights.
We can't fall into the trap of making a protest against a person or group, because protesting against groups that we don't agree with leads to us stereotyping everyone in that group as being bad and terrible. While there are some Trump supporters who do take it too far, you still need to realize that most voters had a really hard decision to make. Let's not grill any one group for all the problems and let's fight against the issue that has already been present, even before the election.
It's really important to do things together that encourage love and create an environment where people don't have to be scared that they are going to get hurt because they think, behave, or look differently. We need to advocate and promote communication between all communities because we are all human and we are all entitled to be treated and loved like real human beings, no matter what our political views are.
"We are all human beings, part of the human race, and we need to be compassionate and giving and kind with one another."
- Katherine Heigl
America, let us create communities that will overcome hate and evil with love. Let us use our First Amendment responsibly and protest peacefully, and let us replace hatred with kindness.
