When I woke up on Wednesday morning, the first thing I said to my roommate was, “it wasn’t a dream. Donald Trump is actually our president.” I will never forget the disappointment and fear I was consumed with in that moment.
I am not one to comment on politics. I am 18, have just voted in my first election, and do not feel like it is important to shove my beliefs down other people’s throats. That being said, I do not feel that it is important to share who I voted for, but I will share that I did not vote for Donald Trump.
I could not bring myself to vote for Trump, not because of what he stands for, but because whom he stands against: women, immigrants and the LGBT community.
As a woman, I am overwhelmed with fear that a sexist man is now the face of our country. Women in our country have come so far, however there is still so much ground to cover. I cannot confidently say that Trump will try and mend the pay gap. I cannot confidently say that Trump will stop belittling women every time he opens his mouth. I cannot say that Trump will teach the young men of our country to treat women respectfully. It confuses me that mothers can vote for a man like Trump when he talks about your daughters in such a manner. How are your daughters supposed to thrive in a country where it appears that women are going to be disrespected and dismissed in the years to come?
As a human being with compassion, I will never back the building of a wall to keep out immigrants. No, I am not supporting illegal immigration. Yes, I want our country to be as safe as it can be. However, our country has the reputation of being a melting pot. We need to continue being the diverse country that we are known to be. Deporting immigrants will not “Make America Great Again,” it will shake our culture and community. By no means will we become better by being a racist, exclusive and fenced in (or walled in in this case) society. Over the course of Tuesday night’s events, I saw snapchats and tweets from friends of other races fearing they would be deported or stating that they did not feel welcome in their own country. No leader should ever make any group of people uncomfortable in the country that they call home. That alone is a disgrace.
As a straight woman, I still give my utmost support to the LGBT community. One of my biggest inspirations is an eight-year old, transgender girl whom has greatly impacted my life. To see the courage that she wakes up with every morning is truly amazing. I am fearful for her, and for the rest of the LGBT community, that legislation is now in the hands of a true bigot. When the face of our country has such a strong stance one group, it is natural for people to back their ideas. However, in this case, backing Donald Trump and his anti-LGBT ways will be detrimental to our country and all the progress we have made. Our nation has been moving forward for this community, from the passing to gay marriage to everyday acceptance. Donald Trump does not support this community. In the best interest of our country, we should continue moving forward, however, it seems as though that will not be the case.
I know that writing this will not change the results of the election. I am fully aware that as a country we have to accept what has happened and begin to move forward together. I am hopeful that President Elect Donald Trump will surprise us all and have a successful presidency, both for his sake and for the sake of our country. Since he has been announced as the winner of the election, he has said that he will be “a president for all.” But I dare to ask, how is Donald Trump supposed to be “a president for all” when he blatantly stands against so many different walks of life?
