In light of the recent election, many people are speaking their voices about the outcome. Since the results didn't go the way many thought they would, people are taking it into their own hands to have their voices heard. Whether it is through social media, protesting, or other forms of speaking out. Many of these people are millennials, the generation I am a part of. A hashtag on twitter, "#itoffendsmewhen", has been trending lately, and older generations are not happy about it. Older people see us as being "too soft" or "too sensitive." It's hard to know that's how people think of us, when we are just standing up for what is right.
President-elect Donald Trump has caused a lot of controversy in our society, and millennials aren't afraid to voice their concerns on the issue. Although this hashtag began as a way for us to talk about what we see wrong with Trump's political platform, many conservatives and others have taken to use it against "whiny millennials." Scrolling through the tag for just five minutes, I was able to find accounts posting about interracial families, claiming they are "white genocide" for mixing different races, I've found posts about President Obama not taking "moral actions" for not acknowledging a cop accused of police brutality, and another post about immigrants having it easier that United States citizens, which was hard to believe. You'll also find your standard homophobic, xenophobic, racist, and sexist comments under the tag as well. Reading through, it is hard to believe a country can have such negative views on minorities. However, I don't see being offended as a bad thing.
Being 18, this was the first election I was able to vote in. Yes, I voted in the primaries. Although my candidate didn't make it to the next round of elections (Feel the Bern!), I realized my choices weren't all that great. However, I took offense to many of the things Donald Trump built his political platform on, as well as the views of his vice president, Mike Pence. I don't agree with Trump's views on gun issues. As a person who is not a huge fan of guns, it scares me that Trump believes being able to carry a concealed weapon is a good idea. I know that in parts of our country, the lengths you have to go through to get a gun are extensive, but there are also people getting AK-47's and other military-grade weapons, who then commit mass murder, something we see in the news too often. Not that it offends me, but it scares me that a president has such loose views on an issue like this.
Something that's hard for me to wrap my head around is his platform built off hate. Practically from the start of his campaign, Donald Trump has used the "build a wall" and "Make America Great Again" slogans, and people loved that. Coming from a liberal state, it was surprising to see many tweets, Facebook posts, and other platforms expressing their support for this candidate. He ran a campaign built off xenophobia, homophobia, sexism, and racism, and people loved it. It's hard to take a step back and realize that half of our country voted for these negative ideals. We also elected someone who doesn't want to fund Planned Parenthood, and who doesn't want to give women the choice to get an abortion. If given the choice, many women wouldn't want to get abortions. Many times, they aren't in the right financial situation to support a child, there may be complications that could threaten her life, or the pregnancy may be a result of rape or sexual assault. Her body, her choice. By the way, "ripping the baby from the mother" at 9 months is called a cesarian section birth. Really. And yes, this all offends me. Get over it.
I know I can't do anything to directly change the outcome of this election. I know that "America has chosen" our next President (although, side note, the electoral college is very outdated and shouldn't actually be a thing anymore). However, I'm not going to stop writing, I'm not going to stop protesting or advocating love and acceptance, and I'm not going to stop fighting for what I believe in. My first year of college has already brought so many amazing things, and living in New York City, I have the chance to attend rallies, walk-outs, and other events, not to talk shit about Trump, but to show my support and love for the minority communities "offended" by our new President-elect. So yes, I may be offended, but it sure is not a bad thing. I'm #stillwithher.
