What Trump's Presidency Means For Minorities

As of November 8, Donald Trump was elected president. For many intersectionalized groups, this was the worst possible outcome of the election. The Trump and Pence duo has expressed quite a few anti-lgbt and anti-immigrant ideals. Among these are Trump’s immense desire to build a wall on the Mexican border to keep out immigrants, and Pence’s claim that electrocution could be used to help queer-identifying individuals “curb sexual desires.”

Among a sea of schemes so outrageous they nearly sound humorous, Trump has actually made some genuinely terrifying statements during his campaign. Trump has said that he plans to make Muslims wear badges in public and force them to register to a database. For anyone who remembers learning about World War II, this sounds strikingly similar to Jews in Nazi Germany being registered as Jewish and wearing stars of David.

His running mate and Vice President-Elect, Mike Pence, has a years-long record of supporting anti-woman and anti-LGBT policies. Pence has stated before that he believes that abortion and marriage equality have no place in the United States, but perhaps his most dangerous quality is his support of conversion therapy.

For anyone who has been spared the gritty details of conversion therapy, it is intended to “fix” a gay or transgender individual. Although sometimes it’s as harmless as forcing people to go to church, conversion therapy can also include inhumane practices such as feeding patients human feces while showing them gay porn. Of course this so-called “treatment” has been shown to be ineffective in curing queer identifying individuals, and it can also lead to depression, anxiety, and even suicide.

So, what will this all mean for minority groups?

A lot of people seem to think that Trump’s election means the start of a second Holocaust, but we have policies in place to prevent that sort of thing. The United Nations are meant to prevent another world war, and United States congress is meant to keep the President from doing anything unconstitutional.

The main issue isn’t that our president would send all LGBT citizens to concentration camps and make abortions punishable by the same jail sentences as murder. The problem is that people have seen Trump making racist, sexist, and homophobic comments, but he’s still won the presidency. This sends the message that you can be a sexual predator or commit violent hate The nation’s choice in this election has shown that the public hasn’t become as open as we’ve thought in the past eight years. A good portion of the United States still oppose women’s, LGBT, and transgender rights.

So, what can you do if you want to combat this hate? The first step is to look out for any minorities; use your privileges to your advantage. Watch out for women, people of color, and gay couples, and defend them if someone seems like they may become violent. Don’t think that you’re overreacting. Call the authorities if someone is becoming violent, and do not leave the victim alone. Videotape the assailant if possible.

You can also sign a petition persuading the electoral college to give the presidency to Hillary on December 19th, but it’s a long shot, and even with Hillary in the Whitehouse, it won’t fix the hatred of individuals.

The easiest way to combat this, though, is peaceful protests. Don’t become complacent. If Trump and Pence try to take our rights away, fight back. Don’t stop creating and spreading peace and knowledge. Above all else, remember that hope always dies last. We will be okay, and we will survive the next four years.