Identifying As Republican Isn’t The Problem | The Odyssey Online
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Politics and Activism

I Don’t Have A Problem With Republicans, I Have A Problem With Racists And Homophobes

Racist, sexist, homophobic, bigoted views have no place in politics and should not be a characteristic of a political party.

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https://unsplash.com/photos/ALGRkWz3-yc

There's nothing wrong with being a Republican, let's get that straight first.

The issue is if you're a Republican who also identifies as white supremacists, or who is racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. In general, it's an issue if you're a Republican who's aim is to marginalize minority groups in this country. This is the same case for Democrats also. A party cannot function when they are actively demonizing a group of people who are just as much a part of American society.

If you're a Republican, it's also an issue when you're standing with a party that is known for its prejudiced views and is currently represented by a president who evokes those views, and you don't actively stand against it.

Lindsey Graham, Mitt Romney, and even Ted Cruz have each voiced their negative sentiments about Trump.

But then when they are faced with reelection, they have instantly backpedaled and have shown their loyal support for the president. There's no way that each of these congressmen thought that Trump had become a knowledgeable politician or has finished spouting inappropriate tweets.

The only change that happened was with their looming elections and the potential loss of their power.

People have to be brave. To be willing to criticize politicians when they speak their prejudice rhetoric. This is especially true if they are part of your own party. In order for American politics to be fair and representative of all people, it has to start with politicians to first stop spouting hate speech and to also criticize other individuals who do the same.

American politics no longer has room for partisan divisions. Not with the looming problems of climate change, the lack of monitoring on big business and lobbying, and the increasing amount of hate speech arising not only in this country but in others who look up to the U.S.

So, to that article that identifies as a millennial Republican, great.

I completely agree that not all Republicans should be characterized as an army of Trumps. There is such a thing as a moderate Republican and moderate Democrats, etc. We have to learn to accept different beliefs in society and understand that each one of us has different opinions and different upbringings.

But this isn't the same thing as hate speech. Whatever your political party is, you should always be standing against hate and if you're not, you're honestly just as bad as those individuals spouting the hate.

I'm also going to put it out there and also say that if you're a Republican, who (like in 2016) votes for Trump, but still say you don't actually believe in all of his lies or hate speech or that you voted for him because he was the only Republican candidate, you're making this country worse by not being brave enough to stand against people in your own party.

And you're the reason why this country continues to be sexist, racist, homophobic, xenophobic, classist individuals.

You're the reason why we continue to take multiple steps back.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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