I won't lie, I'm disappointed. I'm disappointed that Donald Trump won the election. I'm disappointed and saddened for Hillary Clinton, whom I feel deserved this position and had earned it. I'm disappointed that both the House and Senate will be run by the GOP. But more than any of this, I am disappointed in the behavior of my fellow citizens in the hours since Trump was announced president elect. Leaders, lawmakers... they are what they are. But what affects me and my loved ones daily, are other common people. And some of us have gone absolutely ballistic.
I understand the reasons people voted for Donald Trump, though I don't necessarily agree with these reasons. That's fine; I love the people I love no matter who they voted for. But I can't look past the behavior this election has incited, on both sides of the party lines.
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A quick scroll through my Facebook and Twitter feeds highlights the atrocities occurring in the nation I love, and my heart is broken. A group of Catholic schoolgirls told a black woman she needed to go to the back of the bus, because "Trump is president now." A group of four white men, flying a Trump/Pence flag in the back of their pick up truck, verbally harassed and brandished weapons at a black woman at a gas station. A Latino student came home to her dorm, to find her roommate had built a wall of objects down the middle of the room. High school students in Pennsylvania chanted "Cotton picker, you're a N*****, heil Hitler." A young woman was assaulted, her head covering was ripped off, and her car was stolen by young men yelling about Trump. People have found notes left on their front doors stating "gay families burn in hell." A tweet from my hometown's university, a school and campus I love, has gone viral: it quotes verbatim the language Trump used in the Hollywood Access video, and caused my friends back home severe anxiety about showing up to school, for fear of being sexually assaulted on campus. There are literal swastikas graffiti-ed all over the place.
Meanwhile, those who didn't support Donald Trump are protesting in major cities, on college campuses, in front of the White House. My friends are signing petitions to eliminate the electoral college, without thinking about the long term affects that would have. Things are becoming violent on both sides.We are screaming at those who oppose our political beliefs, throwing insults, threats, snide comments that completely disregard anyone else's world view. My husband made me carry a pocket knife today- tomorrow we are buying pepper spray. My LGBT+ friends are scared for their futures. My friends who happened to be the sons and daughters of LEGAL immigrants are scared for their futures.They are protesting, because they are terrified. They are terrified because we have elected a president who has made people feel justified in their violence and hate against minority groups.
So yes, I respect the electoral process. I will respect Donald Trump as my president (because I implored Republicans to respect President Obama, and I would be a hypocrite to not respect Mr. Trump). I respect my friends and family who voted for him; I love my family and friends who voted for him. And I will do what Hillary Clinton asked me to do, and accept Donald Trump with an open mind. I will pray for my nation and know that God has a plan for it. But I will not stop fighting for what is good, and right, and justified. I will not be quiet while my fellow Americans are victimized, assaulted, and harassed. While I understand some of the reasoning behind voting for Donald Trump, and it is not my intent to offend anyone who did so... this situation is a direct result from the rhetoric we all heard during this election season. And it's not okay.
I don't believe the Trump/Pence administration will enact policy that take away civil rights. At least not at the level some are afraid it will. I don't believe Mr. Trump is calling for these acts of violence. I do believe that the language used by Donald Trump during his rallies has triggered violent acts. He needs to do better. Stop mocking and belittling the disabled, women, people of color, the LGBT+ community. I have accepted him as my president, but I will not accept the hate crimes committed in his name.
