If you have seen any news in the United States within the past year, I can almost guarantee that many of the stories you hear scare you. Whether it be the sheer election of Donald Trump that frightens you or the scare tactics he uses to gain popularity, you are scared.
To the Trump supporters, you are scared of domestic and international terrorism. You are scared of losing your jobs. You are scared of illegal immigration. You are scared that your freedom of speech is being compromised. You are scared of big business running the country, and he gives you hope.
As a Trump opponent, I am scared of my basic human rights being taken away. I am scared for my healthcare. I am scared of a world with too many borders. I am scared of corruption. I am scared of losing funding for important public facilities like schools and national parks. I am scared of a world that moves backward, and he takes away my hope of a better world every day.
All of this fear brings outrage, anger, and frustration in everyone despite their differing motives. Whatever you are scared of, fear is exactly what Trump wants us to feel, and I refuse to let this fear control my life anymore. The recent missile attack on Syria and Trump's nonchalant demeanor about the act is making the whole world feel scared. With some crying that this is the beginning of World War Three, it is almost impossible to feel fearless in a world that does nothing but encourages and projects the tragedies that occur every day. Whatever political party we align ourselves with, this immense amount of fear is one thing most of us have in common, and it is the one thing that can easily be used against us. If a major terrorist attack or war will occur, our fear is the only way the government can keep us believing in it.
I do believe that many of our fears are justified, but if we learn to take these fears and turn them into actions, they will be doing us more good than harm. The way to do this though is to take away the aspect of fear and turn it into a reason for empowerment. By talking to people from other political parties and expanding our minds, we can better understand the motives of others, and this helps diminish the fear we express about them. By going to local government town hall meetings and making our voices heard, we can take action by voicing our fears and inspiring others. By coming together with people who have the same fears as us, we realize that we are not alone, and we are always stronger together.
Fear is an almost inescapable emotion, but what we do with it and how we let it affect us is in our hands.
