A few days ago, our fellow Americans elected Donald Trump to be the next president of the United States of America.

Just let that sink in for a moment. A reality TV star is our next president. If you are like me, white and straight, you probably don't have much to worry about for yourself; we will weather this storm pretty easily, but what about everyone else? Our country isn't just filled with white, straight people and it shouldn't be. I love America because it is home to some of the most diverse groups in the world. My friends have all different identities and to us that's the best part. It is time that we tell our country that every identity is important and none of them deserve anything less than support and love. I've read countless Facebook posts, listened to what, unfortunately, seems like endless stories of abuse, and the conclusion I've reached is that protesting and writing to our representative isn't working. These two things started long before the election and here we are, with a racist bigot as our next president.

Today I asked a friend whether or not she thinks violence is the answer and she responded without even thinking about it that she would use violence if necessary. She said that she would not stand by and watch people get hurt and killed. Is violence the answer?

I argued that being violent would bring us down to the level of those we are trying to defeat and she said that to save lives it was worth it. Is that the answer? Is there an answer? I realize now what I should have realized before: people with privilege like myself should have done something long before this happened. Donald Trump is just a manifestation of the racism and homophobia that has been a part of America since it was created. Now we as a country are stuck doing damage control and hoping that we can prevent violence against the people we love. I may lose my right to choose to have an abortion which is horrible, but some of my friends could face far worse consequences. No one should have to choose between being themselves and surviving in America. This country was never perfect, but we have made a lot of progress and we cannot allow that to be undone. Racism and bigotry have always existed, but now we need to stamp it out for good.

Up until this point, I have stayed relatively quiet about the results of this presidential election because I've been processing what all of this means and now it's time to act. The problem is that there is no clear way to more forward. There is no answer that can put an end to systemic racism or hatred. It's time to act, but what action should be taken?