My Thoughts on the 2016 Election Results

Here’s what I have to say about the election. First, I know that many of you would prefer we all keep our opinions to ourselves, but I feel it is my moral obligation to speak out, and I think that silence, in the face of injustice, is permissive.

 

I did my part at the voting booth to elect my candidate, and  now, in spite of my best hopes, a man who personifies the antithesis of my every value will soon be the leader of the free world, and there is nothing within the bounds of my personal code of ethics that I can do to change that.

 

So, yes, I accept that Donald Trump will be the next president of the United States.

 

But I do not accept his unethical lack of prosocial values as permission for the rest of the world to go mad.

 

I abhor racism, sexism, gender inequality, homophobia, white supremacy, mindless nationalism, theocracy, oligarchy, punishing the poor, and dogmatic schools of thought.

 

I believe in the equality of all races, genders, gender identities, and sexual orientations. I believe that the hoarding of wealth is unethical. I believe in the separation of church and state. I believe in social welfare, reasonable gun control laws, that our laws should not exist solely to make the rich richer, and that our wealthiest citizens and corporations are not above the law. I believe in peace. I believe in raising the minimum wage. I think that every human should have the right to a home, a job, an education, excellent medical care, and a healthy planet. I believe in science, which tells us that the world is round, that it is more than 4.5 billion years old, that modern species evolved from earlier forms of life, and that certain aspects of human activity in the modern age are having an adverse effect on the environment.

 

Above all, I believe in critical thinking, and I believe in hope. And I will speak out against any perceived threats to these values, no matter how powerful the person behind the threats may be. Because, as I already said, silence in the face of injustice is permissive.

 

Donald Trump may give Americans permission, by his words and actions, to be bigots, to revel in all of the isms and phobias that make the world seem so much more terrible than it ever needs to be, to deny science and reason.

 

But I will not give my permission, either through silence or compliance, for the isms and the phobias and the thoughtlessness to run wild and unchecked.

 

When I witness an injustice, lawful or otherwise, I will speak out in defense of the defenseless, the oppressed, and the marginalized in my writing, in my interactions with other human beings, and with how I live my life. No matter who the president is, and no matter who would rather I just keep it to myself, I will do this.

 

Words are powerful.

 

That is the most frightening thing to me about the words of Donald Trump.

 

If you are among any one of the many groups that has been targeted by Trump’s hate speech; if you are as frightened by the implications of a Donald Trump presidency as I am, I am letting you know that you may count on me to be one of the many voices who will continue to speak out on your behalf, against all of the things we fear, should they indeed come to pass.

 

I will not be silent.

 

Peace.