Stop telling me it’s all okay.
Stop trying to belittle my opinions and feelings.
Stop telling me that I am whining.
I woke up on November 9th at 6 am to a text message saying: “Breathe and try and take each day as they come.” I looked up the results knowing already what it would say but desperately hoping it wasn’t so, but it was. Trump and Pence had won the election. The whole morning I felt like I was moving through a fog and through class I fought tears back.
The tears weren’t because my candidate lost, or because of who won the election. They were tears of fear for what this meant to me as an LGBT citizen. The dreams and plans I had started to sketch out for the next few years after my graduation were washed away in a single day. Why even consider a proposal within the next 5 years when same-sex marriage could become illegal once more? What would I do if a future employer fired me because I was gay and there is no one saying “she’s protected from that”? What if I want to just go into a business or get insurance and I get turned away because of who I am? All of these thoughts and more run through my head now. The dreams of having a job where I can’t be fired based on my sexual orientation and marrying the woman I love; fading ever so slightly.
The GOP now has hold of the Presidential Office as well as both House and Senate. The 2016 GOP Platform condemns the Supreme Court rulings on same-sex marriage and believes “[t]raditional marriage and family, based on marriage between one man and one woman, is the foundation for a free society…” They suggest that the return to traditional marriage be accomplished “through judicial reconsideration or constitutional amendment...” In addition, the GOP seeks to adapt a First Amendment Defense Act on a national scale. This act essentially protects people who are opposed to same-sex marriage from action by the US Government. So if the person who’s handing out marriage licenses doesn’t like gay people and sees my fiance and I walking up to get one; we would get denied.
Our new Vice-President Elect, Mike Pence, is the last person any LGBT citizen would want protecting them. He has voted multiple times to either define marriage as being between one man and one woman or ban same-sex marriage altogether. As quoted from his 2000 campaign website: "Congress should oppose any effort to put gay and lesbian relationships on an equal legal status with heterosexual marriage." Enough said.
Now to the President Elect, Trump. I’ve had a few people tell me that he is a supporter of the LGBT community. They post about a video of him smiling on stage with a rainbow flag. To that I say: anyone can stand on stage and smile with an object. Trump’s choice of running mate discredits any support he might offer the LGBT community. He has also stated that he supports traditional marriage. Honestly, though it is the way the he has ran his campaign that has me worried about him being in office.
I am sad and distraught about the direction that our government is facing for the LGBT community. I will not let the possibility become a reality. I will fight for my right because love trumps hate. It might be a hard road but I know there are many who are beside me. A quote that my girlfriend sent to me today gave me the hope I needed:
“Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” ~ Albus Dumbeldore
So, please...
