For most of Tuesday evening and Wednesday, I attempted to rationalize the decisions of some of my fellow Americans.
As a white, middle-class male, I cannot even begin to place myself in the shoes of any individual that belongs to a minority. I have never once in my life experienced the adversity many Americans face every day. I have no way of understanding the angst millions of Americans felt waking up Wednesday after seeing their neighbors, family members and friends vote for a man that has run his campaign on fear.
Even though I do not belong to any minority group, I fear for my neighbors, family members and friends. I fear for their rights as humans. President-elect Donald Trump said, if elected, he would create a “special deportation task force,” according to a Washington Post report published today.
I fear for the women in my life. Trump has made his views on women and sexual assault very clear throughout his life.
“[There were] 26,000 unreported sexual assaults in the military-only 238 convictions. What did these geniuses expect when they put men and women together?” said Trump in a 2013 tweet.
As Election Day neared, the outlook for Secretary Hillary Clinton was positive. A fivethirtyeight.com poll updated at noon on Tuesday showed Clinton with a 71 percent chance of winning the presidency. Then Tuesday night happened.
From the get-go, Trump won state after state. He began the night by taking Indiana and Kentucky compared to Clinton’s three electoral votes from Vermont.
Hope came for Clinton supporters when polls on the East coast closed at 7 p.m. Clinton won Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Washington D.C. She then rolled off wins in Illinois and Rhode Island.
Then Trump won the South. However, this was expected, except for Florida. In the most recent poll, Clinton was projected to edge out Trump in Florida, a controversial swing state in many recent elections, according to a 4 p.m. poll by the Huffington Post. Much to the chagrin of Clinton supporters, it wasn’t meant to be, and Trump took the 29 electoral votes from Florida.
The final hopes of Democrats were eliminated as Trump flipped swing state after swing state. He took Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin.
This election was not about Democrats against Republicans. This election was about common sense against evil.
Many Americans thought this could never happen, that an individual as bigoted and xenophobic as Trump could be elected president. I thought Americans would be able to see Trump for the racist he is. I believed the morals of the American people would win the election.
That is why I have spent the past 20 hours trying to rationalize and understand the differences in my morals and the morals of my fellow Americans. This election has caused me to rethink what America stands for as a country. This morning I find myself questioning what the people around me believe in.
Whether you voted for Trump, Clinton, Johnson or even Stein, now is the time to come together. Even though I have no idea what will happen in the next four years, I know that for America to move forward, Republicans and Democrats alike must work together.
Your candidate may not have won, but you must not let it be the end of the world. Fashion your outrage and your confusion into positive action.
