ForDT
For more voices, read The Bolt special edition this Friday, Nov. 18.
I am not afraid of Donald Trump but I am afraid of what elected him. I am afraid for people of color, religious minorities, women, members of the LGBTQIA community, transgender people in America, immigrants and undocumented people to have a leader who ran on an openly sexist, homophobic, Islamophobic, racist, ableist, xenophobic platform. Donald Trump is the president-elect but will never be my president because I will not support a platform of hate, bigotry, intolerance, white feminism, or white supremacy.
To ignore that this man who was going on trial for child rape and has been accused by 12 different women of sexual assault is to ignore the fact that 9 out of 10 victims of rape are women (RAINN) and that 1 out of every 6 American women (over 17.7 million women in America) have been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in her lifetime (National Institute of Justice & Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Prevalence, Incidence and Consequences of Violence Against Women Survey). This man on record has been endorsed by the KKK, mocked a disabled reporter, disparaged veterans and their families, ridiculed and shamed women because of their weight, demonized and scapegoated entire groups of people based on race, denied climate change (claiming it was a hoax created by the Chinese despite overwhelming evidence that it exists), advocated for war crimes, pushed for removing freedom of speech and press, urged supporters to beat up protesters, pushed to ban roughly a quarter of the world’s population from setting foot on U.S. soil on account of their religion, endorsed torture, defended the internment of Japanese-Americans, rerouted charity money for personal legal troubles, supported white nationalists, and has repeatedly criticized sexual assault victims (even suggested to a reporter who accused him of sexual assault that she wasn’t attractive enough to be sexual assaulted). These are some examples among the many many things he has said, tweeted and implied.
The demographics and populist anger at the establishment are not enough reason to condone hate. To ignore his racism and misogyny is to ignore the 6 percent spike in hate crimes toward American Muslims (NYTimes) after the election. To look at only the economics is to overlook the sexist racist things he has promised. A vote for Trump doesn’t mean you hate women, people of color, or religious minorities, it means you don’t care about what happens to women, religious minorities, POC or members of the LGBTQIA community because his words and action won’t personally affect you.
The truth is climate change is real and sea levels are rising at an unprecedented rate that could displace millions of people by the end of the century. The truth is individuals from other countries (namely China) are not stealing American jobs because these jobs are willingly given away by American businesses looking to exploit labor and under-pay wages. The truth is between Wednesday, November 9 (the day after the presidential election) and the morning of Monday, November 14, the Southern Poverty Law Center collected 437 reports of hateful intimidation and harassment mostly against minorities. The truth is the vast majority of perpetrators of sexual violence will not go to jail or prison. The truth is that Republican control of all three branches of government means there will be legislation pushed forward that is anti-choice, anti-immigrant, and anti-LGBTQ. The truth is there will be measures put in place that affect millions of Americans, from the undocumented people he has promised to deport and to women who depend on organizations like Planned Parenthood that provide basic healthcare. It is important to focus on nationwide issues like gun control and healthcare but reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, misogyny, racism and xenophobia are equally American issues.
The protests going on throughout the country may be an inconvenience for you but they are acts of solidarity. They are a message to the people who will be affected by this presidency that they are not alone. It is a message for women, people of color, people who identify as transgender, members of the LGBTQ community, undocumented immigrants and for every person who has been disrespected during this candidacy that their lives matter and what happens to them is important and will not go unnoticed. People in this country aren’t upset that their candidate lost. People are afraid of what will happen to their friends, families and neighbors. What a privilege it must be to overlook a president’s racism, sexism and bigotry because it won’t affect you.
We must continue to stand up to injustice and hate. We must continue to hold the president-elect accountable. This election has started something big in this country. I am hopeful for the future because I know that the outcome of this election will inspire entire generations of women, religious minorities and people of color to the highest levels of all offices and I am so grateful to be alive during this revolution.
Sorry for the inconvenience. We are trying to change the world.
The following reports and graphics are taken from the Southern Poverty Law Center. They show a total of 437 of hateful intimidation and harassment between Nov. 9 and Nov. 14.
