Another historical moment happened in Philadelphia this past Thursday.
Hillary Clinton made a groundbreaking speech at the DNC as she became the first woman to accept a presidential nomination from a major party.
Regardless if you support her or not—this is a revolutionary moment for all women. Despite the famous email controversy, Clinton has nothing but experience when it comes to politics and has actually contributed more good than bad when it comes to policymaking. One mistake (even though not convicted of any lawful wrongdoing) should not overshadow all of the good she has done throughout her legacy in office and during her time in the Obama administration.
Witnessing a woman finally take the reigns as president of the United States is something every girl dreams to see in her lifetime—along with their proud fathers, brothers and husbands.
In 2008, we witnessed history with the first black president. Despite your political views or opinions of Obama, he has achieved numerous accomplishments throughout his time in office including passing healthcare reform, a stimulus to get us out of the one of the worst recessions since the Great Depression, as well as ending the war in Iraq and sending troops home. Many accomplishments in which Clinton was standing behind the whole way.
I agree with many who think she may not be the best fit for candidacy. Honestly, she wouldn’t be my first choice to hold such a prestigious position that will go down in history and impact the future for women—but as of right now she’s our only hope. More importantly—she is a way better fit than her current opponent.
Trust me, there are many other women I would prefer to represent this honorable moment. Someone who has experience, but no history of wrongdoing, who has fame without recognition of her husband and who is overall honest, dependable and symbolic of a pure, innocent, Virgin Mary, but guess what—there aren’t many of those in politics.
We can only assume that Republican Party candidate Donald Trump has a clean record in politics, well, because—he has no record in politics.
In a biography written about him, he is literally described as a “billionaire real estate mogul and reality television personality.” As an aggressive man with no experience in foreign politics, how can we trust him with our country?
Despite her careless mishandling of classified emails, Hillary has her accomplishments. The Children’s Health Insurance Program, providing healthcare to more than 8 million kids, The Pediatric Research Equity Act, enforcing drug companies to study medication and provide safety for children, a ceasefire negotiation for Israel, her work for NATO and help in restoring U.S alliances with EU and key Asian allies, advocating for LGBT and women’s rights—to name a few.
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In an interview on MSNBC News, Arianna Huffington, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the Huffington Post said people don’t have to like Clinton to vote for her, but they should because she is the “only thing standing between us and Donald Trump.”
“I think what is even more important for everybody who is going to vote is to realize that whether they like Hillary Clinton or not, whether they like her email server, or her suits, or the fact that she didn’t leave her husband—she is the one and only thing standing between the United States and the existential threat of a Donald Trump presidency,” Huffington said.
Even at the DNC, democrats, delegates, politicians and Bernie lovers from all over came together to realize that Hillary is now our only hope. Those who were completely against her are now trying to work together to persuade policies and push her in the right direction.
Sunday, July 24, the day before the DNC, Bernie supporters began to fill the streets across from Philadelphia’s City Hall. Activists visited from all over the U.S in support of Bernie and many realized that voting Clinton is their only fighting chance to have Bernie’s voice heard.
Aleece DePuey, a delegate and Bernie activist from Riverside, California, visited Philadelphia for the four-day DNC. Now that Bernie is out of the race and gave Clinton an endorsement, DePuey’s main focus is to assure Clinton holds to her policies that she campaigned on.
“We want to push the party back to the left where it belongs,” DePuey said. “We have to get money out of politics because when you take money, you owe favors, so we need to get money out so that the government is really working for people and not for corporations.”
DePuey's son is a marine stationed overseas and her husband is a reservist, so shaping Clinton's foreign policies dealing with no-fly zones over Syria and other military aggression is very personal to her. She believes that even though she doesn’t necessarily support her, advocating for those endorsing Clinton will allow for persuasion of policies and overall legislation.
“Bernie has turned a whole generation of people, even older people like me, into activists,” DePuey said. “In the future, I think he’s going to have a lot more say and it will be interesting to see what else he traded for that endorsement.”
DePuey said her focus now is to assure that Clinton sticks to her policies and upholds this honorable opportunity she has to change history.
“We’re going to keep her to her promises.”
