One Nation
A personal reaction piece following the presidential election of 2016.
The Format: 8.5" x 11" – easy and cheap to reproduce and create a foldable, interactive user experience. Compact when folded for easy transfer, holding, and distribution. When unfolded, my full thoughts could be read as well as hung up as a mini poster.
Many people like to claim that democracy has failed us. In the contrary, democracy has succeeded. The system has always had flaws and loopholes. Trump happened to be able to play the game the best and play that system all the way to the white house.
The election season has come and gone. We are now faced with the premise of what is to be “Trump’s America” soon. In the few months of the lame duck period, the United States must prepare for a change in the system. Not only do we have a President Elect that is aligned with the highly conservative right wing side of the Republicans, but we also have a Republican majority in the House of Representatives and the Senate. This scares me not only because I personally feel that I align myself with the left winged Democratic party, but also be-cause there is virtually no real, working system of checks and balances anymore.
This is a shocking time, but at the same time it really isn’t. We all saw this coming from far away. We never really took it too seriously, though. We let the poison spread for too long and grow. It grew so strong that we couldn’t fight back by the time the infection had gotten to the important organs of our nation. We cannot unmake the past. We cannot undo and unknow what is already passed. We CAN, however, move forward and work towards a more egalitarian future.
This future should not only align with my personal political beliefs, but be a truly fair system in which the good of the people is put before any politicians personal future. Considering what the popular vote was, Hillary should have been elected. The broken system of the electoral college was played in Trump’s favor. The democrats took the blue states for granted and Trump broke through the big blue wall.
In a fury of white-lash, the country said goodbye to a marginalized black man running the nation and hello to the familiar, oppressive, hegemonic regime that is the cis, heterosexual, wealthy white man. The white people of America (even white women who have been consistently insulted and disrespected by Trump) obviously want change that does not take care
of marginalized groups. This America that we are moving towards does not care about true freedom and protection. It is one that is not interested in the well being or the equal treatment and representation of people of color, of the LGBTQ+ community, women, and of various religions (specifically Islam).
It is outrageous to think of what this nation has become. It felt for a split second that we had come so far and had been working so hard to create a fair, just society and culture where EVERYONE could be anything they worked towards. The real American Dream isn’t a pie in the window of your pretty four-bedroom house surrounded by your green lawn and bordered with a white picket fence. The real American Dream is one of hardship that leads to greatness for anyone. A true system of merit should deem who is worthy and deserving, not the color of someone’s skin, the god(s) they do or don’t pray to, what sex they were assigned at birth, or whether or not their family has money. Those who have the means to achieve greatness should be deserving and recognized to do so.
I have read many articles analyzing the election and why the results have to come to what they are. I do not fear the future as much as I had when the initial turnout had surfaced. Today, I carry a small shred of hope around. I hope to educate myself and others to take action sooner. I also am consciously working to not spread hate against political opponents. Hate is what got us here in the first place. Hate is what drove the passion for change. Doing the same action (even if it’s for your side) and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity. Driving our country apart and segregating it was the hateful gut reaction that got us into this mess. We need to trust and unite more than ever now. That’s the only way to move forward and not remain stagnated in this tar pit that we’ve put ourselves in.
Now is the time to be adaptable. We can’t waste time and energy crying over the past when we should direct that towards working for a more clear, hopeful future. Within this hope lies the idea of a more egalitarian system that give just opportunities, rights, and treatment to all people to one day achieve their recognized, legitimate
American Dream.
Thanks for Watching!
