About a week ago, Donald Trump became our new president and the country seemed to fall apart. Very few people are happy with this, as most people did not like other presidential candidate. Many people are afraid of what life is going to be like over these next four years during Trump's presidency, but right now, we need to focus on ourselves and not Trump. We as individuals really do not have control over the situation right now, but there are several things we can do that will make life a lot better for these next few years.
1. We need to love each other.
A lot of minorities are terrified of how they may be oppressed during this presidency because Trump and Pence have both said some extremely offensive things about all sorts of minorities. We need to support and love each other. We have all been in situations where we have needed a hug from someone who tells us that they will fight for us in our time of need. Be the person who will fight for those in their time of need. If we have each others' backs and defend those who are being bullied, etc. we can rise above all of the hatred in the world.
2. We need to be peaceful.
Mean words, violence, rioting, etc. is not going to help anyone and causes more harm than good. People are obviously and naturally upset, but violence will only cause more damage to people who are already hurting. If you are going to protest, make a stand, etc, do it peacefully. It's definitely the more mature route to take and will accomplish a lot more than lighting things on fire.
3. Start to move forward.
People will rightfully be angry for a long time. But the time for just being angry has passed, and it is time to start looking for solutions for the problem. The past is in the past, we need to focus on our future. Dwelling on our anger will not make anything better, but if we try to make things better, they will get better.
4. Do not blame Trump for bad people.
Racists are racist. Sexists are sexist. Hateful people hate. Negativity has been around before Trump was even born, and will continue to exist long after Trump is out of office. Trump did not make racist, sexist, etc. people, they were negative before he became president. These hateful people are just using Trump's presidency as an excuse to be hateful, and they are completely unjustified. Do not tolerate that. And tell them that just because Trump is president, that does not give them the right to be a jerk.
5. Stop slut-shaming Melania.
Melania has made some of her own decisions that some of us might not approve of. That is in the past, and we need to let that go. Melania's private life is absolutely none of our business and we need to stop judging her for what she does on her own. We cannot stop sexism unless we stop slut-shaming, and the first lady is no exception, no matter what you think of her.
6. We need to change the electoral college.
I do not have a solution to this problem, although I wish I did. But this has been an issue for several elections now, and it will continue to be an issue. Urge your state law makers to work on a new solution to this problem.
7. Stop blaming third party voters.
Third party voters voted for who they thought would be the best president, just like everyone else did in the election. Do not blame someone for their opinion, even if you disagree with it. The beautiful thing about our country is that we can vote for whoever we want, people do not fight and die for us to be cruel to those people we politically disagree with. Instead of blaming third party voters, how about we pick better candidates that people feel comfortable voting for?
8. We need to pick better candidates.
This is a self-explanatory thing. It can certainly be hard to find a good politician to run, especially because running for president is so expensive. If we put a cap on how much money people can spend during the election process, that can make it lot easier for the "average Joe" to run for president, and that could open the doors to a ton of great, new candidates who have a lot more in common with most of us. Over $250 million dollars were spent on advertising during the week before the election, imagine how that money could be better spent if we did not allow that. Also remember the importance of local politicians, mayors, senators, representatives, judges, etc. The president is certainly not the only person making all decisions, so every candidate in every position counts.
9. We need to stop bashing on the other political parties.
Our founding fathers did not start this country with the intent to have political parties that bitterly hated each other. Our consistent "us vs. them" mindset does not get anything accomplished and only creates more negativity in our country. We need to focus on solving problems instead of bashing on the other party; imagine how much we could accomplish if we worked together.
10. We need to love our country.
Our country is pretty freakin' amazing (so amazing that I would need a separate article to talk about it). We have done, and will continue to do great things. Trump is in office for four years, which in the big scheme of things is not a lifetime (although it may feel like one). We need to come together as a country if we want things to get better. While it is tempting to move to Canada, just remember that every country has its own problems. No president can control everything, at the end of the day, we are the ones who make our country great. Trump cannot control the atmosphere, etc. of every single town, school, establishment, etc. in our country. That is on each one of us. If we could come together, we could do even more amazing things.
The Trump presidency could be terrible, but it could be awesome too. We do not know yet. But if we remain hopeful, love each other and our country, and work on bettering our world, we can make it through anything.
