This past Friday Donald Trump was officially inaugurated as the 45^th President of The United States of America. Many celebrated this new era we are walking into and many marched the streets of Washington D.C. to protest the same exact era. In my opinion, we have not seen an uprising against a president like this in the history of the U.S. and we certainly haven’t seen the uprising at least until after the President has been in office for a period. So far, at least 62 Democratic politicians have stated they will be skipping the inauguration in protest of Donald Trump’s election. Since this announcement was made, news station after news station has been asking “Is it disrespectful to skip the inauguration as a government official?”. Well, the answer is yes, yes, it is. People fail to realize that is kind of the point. After all, we are showing the same level of respect to Mr. Trump as he has shown to much of the American public, none.

Now, as a politics major and staunch liberal, a lot of my friends have asked “Why do you want him to fail? Can you give him a chance?”. Correction, I do not want Mr. Trump to fail (I can’t stomach typing Presid…. Trump), in fact if he proved me wrong and passed amazing policies and forwarded the positive progression of this country, I would be elated. But the simple fact is Mr. Trump continues to handle his role in a juvenile and very improper manner. He continues to try and revoke many of the policies President Obama placed, he yells at the media in a disrespectful manner, and he continues to threaten the lives of the American public and the world as a whole. So, for those of you sitting in this new Presidential Era wondering how to handle this, the answer is simple, fight back. 62 government officials are a lot, but it’s clearly not enough.

It is an important time for politicians in every government building and every role to fight back. Senator Bernie Sanders has organized rallies across the U.S. to fight for the protection of the Affordable Care Act. Senator Sanders along with Elizabeth Warren asked the tough questions during the interview of Trump’s picks for Secretary of Education and Health and Human Services Secretary. Human rights icons like John Lewis are standing up and speaking out against Mr. Trump. Even Angela Merkel has released sly comments encouraging Trump to follow a positive path forward. Politicians, government officials, social activists, even celebrities, these people with notoriety and their own power in varying capacities have a duty to serve the American public by speaking out against Trump. Those who are in clear opposition have a duty to fight back because truthfully the American public can only do so much. But that doesn’t mean we are powerless as daily citizens.

Every day is an opportunity for us as citizens to make a difference. I can guarantee you that we will be seeing thousands more marches and rallies and acts of civil disobedience to participate in. I would encourage you to be involved in every act that you can, because every single person added to these events is one that makes the movements even more powerful. Constantly be signing pledges and petitions to move forth policies and causes you believe. Have a couple extra dollars laying around? Donate to movements, people, organizations, anything that is a cause you support that fights the evil Trump is bringing into this country (aka Donate to Planned Parenthood for sure). And probably one of the most important things you can do, call and write your politicians. You may not think it, but an overwhelming amount of outcry from the American public can steer these government officials into election. Their elections are coming up a lot sooner than Trump’s and they need to keep their voters happy. It is important now more than ever that we stand up not only for our rights, but the rights of those who may never be heard. Donald Trump may be in office for the next four years, but we certainly don’t have to make those four years easy for him.