Well, people, it happened. Inauguration Day has passed us and Donald Trump is our new United States President.
Trump supporters, please hold your applause, and Trump protesters please don't boo. I'm not about to sit here and talk about why I think a Donald Trump Presidency is good or bad or ugly or all of these things. I'm not here to talk about how he's going to "Make America Great Again" or completely destroy the nation, and I won't talk about how Trump is or is not "my" president because I can save those for another day.
What I want to talk about now, is how the seating of one man in a spinning chair in The White House has set off a chain reaction that has divided this nation more so than anything else. It's revealed a rotten underbelly in our country that needs to be addressed before anything else if you ask me.
Donald Trump has revealed a real ugliness in our country. One that should be acknowledged and not ignored. No, seriously, I want everyone to stop fighting, stop arguing, stop screaming at each other because of who you voted for or didn't vote for. Look out the window. Look at your neighbor. Look at what is happening to us, to our nation, as a whole.
The United States is more than just one man sitting in a spinning chair at the Oval Office. It's a collection of ideas and ideals and values and cultures that come together to bring forth something new. Something bigger than one person.
That's what democracy is. It's bigger than one person. You or me or the governor or the President. It's all of us. All of us. Together. And I think we've forgotten that. I think we've all forgotten what democracy is.
Nowadays, it's either my way or the highway. My way is the right way. The only way. But should it really be that way? What's the point of having all these different types of people who come from all nooks and crannies, who all carry different life experiences with them, if we're just going to shut them out and not listen to them? If we don't listen to them, then how can they have a life here too? They should get to have a life like everyone else.
Why can't we protest? Why can't we show everyone how dissatisfied we are with how things are now? If we can't protest, then what should we do?
I know what we shouldn't do though: going around busting windows? Disrespecting troops? Scaring people? That's not going to get your point across. That just makes you look like a jerk.
Stop for a moment. Put that bat down. Don't burn that flag. Because when you burn that flag you're making a statement. You're saying you're giving up. I don't know about you, but I refuse. I will not give up. Because this nation lives as a promise and I want that promise to be true.
"One Nation, Under God, Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for All."
That's exactly what that flag means to me. That's what it should mean. Even if it doesn't now, it can. It most certainly can. Yes, we have some areas we can improve on that, but we can do it. We can. Change is possible. Will it come easy? No, nothing ever comes easy. But it can happen. We can make that promise true for you, for me, and for everyone here in this nation.
So stand. Stand for Freedom. For Justice. For Equality. I have hope. And you should have some too. The world hasn't ended yet. And this nation hasn't fallen. It's going to take more than one man with a twitter finger to do that.
Because that's our job. We make or break this country. Without us, the people, who is he? Come on everyone, it's time to move. A friend once told me if you want to see something change then you have to be that change. That's exactly what I plan to do.
It's time to act. Now more than ever. It's our time. More than ever. Young people, we've got to move.
Because it's not just his Inauguration Day, it's ours too.
