I am sad. You know what, I am more than sad. I am outraged.
I am outraged at the fact that so many people in our country can be so ignorant. I am outraged at the fact that people proclaiming to be Christians can blatantly support a man who, on multiple occasions, has done nothing but encourage hatred. I am outraged that we live in a country where men- particularly white men- voted for Trump simply because they could not give up their privilege for the overall American good of a female president. They couldn’t handle a half-Black president and then subsequently a female one, could they? That would simply just be TOO much power for them to give up.
I am BEYOND outraged that because of ignorance, our country is being set back 50+ years. A man-no- a coward who is blatantly racist, misogynistic, classist, and can best be described as a bully is now in charge of our country.
Treating women, people of color, the LGBT community, Muslims, and many other marginalized groups as if we are objects, as if we should be treated like garbage, because in his ideology that is all we are.
As I reflect on this election and try to gather my emotions, I can’t help but feel these things. I feel for my friends of color whose day-to-day fears for their lives have been exacerbated by this election decision. I feel for my friends in the LGBT community fearing for the ways in which they will once again be persecuted for loving who they love. I fear for the young girls, some of them to which I am a role model, for their future as leaders and creators of change. What do I tell my 8-year-old godsister when she asks me why an underqualified, bigoted man won presidency over a woman who has been preparing her whole life for this position? How can I explain to her that no, she is not just her body, she is her mind, her ideas, and her soul, when there is a man running our nation who promotes the opposite sentiment? How can I make sure that my little toddler niece feels beautiful, intelligent, and strong as she grows older not despite her rich multi-ethnic background but BECAUSE of it- when there is a man who is openly oppressing parts of her being? When there are people out there that continuously support this ideology? I pray every day for these answers and as I continue on in this journey of figuring out where to go from here, I can only see one way. We, must walk, act, breathe, and do all things in LOVE.
It’s time for us to stand together as one and fight hate with the only thing that can cure it. As Martin Luther King Jr. proclaimed, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Let us love on each other now more than ever. God has created each one of us in love and intends for it to stay that way for eternity. If we want to make a change, this is the only way possible. Let us stand together in solidarity, in acceptance, and in LOVE. Let us take this anger and sadness and defeat we are feeling and channel positivity. Let us believe in the power that God has over our collective future and work in His name to create change for good. Finally, let us love our neighbors and work together to support the best life for ALL- the present and our future generations. Love trumps hate…
