Dear Bernie Sanders supporter,
I know last Wednesday must have been the darkest day among these complicated weeks. I realize that Bernie Sanders was a revolutionary and a leader of the American progessive movement. He was a sign of hope for those disappointed in the unfairness of our social and economic structure, American politics, and corruption of the White House. His all inclusive healthcare plan, attractive Green New Deal, restructuring of immigration policies, “College for All” plan, criminal justice reform, and more, attracted many progressive voters and a strong leftist movement that swept across America.
As he recently dropped out of the race, I found that my social media feed became an influx of hate, disappointment, and most importantly, hopelessness. While I understand the frustrations of this loss and the sadness and praise Sanders deserves, I was shocked to see the amount of people willing to not vote in the 2020 election because Joe Biden would be the democratic nominee. Acknowledging that these feelings are valid, I would like to show you the gravity in this mistake and the hope that can be found in voting for Biden…
James Madison once wrote, you should vote “To guard against ‘unworthy candidates’ and the ‘vicious arts’ of politics.” Our primary battle is to remove corruption and hate from the power of the white house. By refusing to vote or writing in another name, your vote goes towards the actions of the Trump Administration and their continuation. This means no climate action, more dehumanizing immigration policies, no resolved healthcare plan, no gun regulations, no trans rights, and the continued humiliating actions of Donald Trump to mention a few. This administration has abused certain American populations and tarnished the American presidential title. It’s our job to reclaim it. While I understand Biden may not be your preferred choice, he is not Donald Trump and does not hold the same outrageous ideologies.
To outline a few of his important plans I’ll mention his plans relating to climate change, gun violence, and college reform.
Like Sanders, a clear priority of Biden’s campaign is global warming. One of our responsibilities as the next generation, is to make sure proper climate action is taken to ensure our future on this planet. Biden’s plans, like Sanders, create a future of clean energy based on environmental justice, adding to American jobs and economic development. Most importantly, they reroute the Trump Administration’s plans to ignore the threat climate change poses on the future of our population. You can read more about the specifics of this plan here.
The last full plan I’ll mention relates to one of Bernie’s most popular incentives as a candidate, college reform. One of the most unfair aspects of American education is the price tag of a good college education and student loan debt americans must pay off for years. While Biden’s plan is less aggressive than Sanders’s, it doesn’t ignore the issue at hand like the Trump Administration and sounds more realistic to me given our current political and economic system. Sanders planned on making all public universities, colleges, and trade schools free for all, investing in HBCUs and MSIs, and ending equity gaps in college admissions. Biden’s plan includes, investing in and making HBCUs, TCUs, and under-resourced MSIs more affordable, making public colleges and universities tuition-free for all families with incomes below $125,000, targeting additional financial support to low-income and middle-class individuals, and more. You can read more on this plan here. While these are not the same plans they are based in the same recognition for an American injustice that needs to be solved.
Biden also has many more plans I would love to dive into relating to healthcare, racial justice, women’s rights, LGBTQIA+rights, immigration reform and more that you can read about here.
Before addressing my closing thoughts there is one more remark that should be addressed and I cannot let go. Joe Biden has received numerous accusations of sexual harassment by women who claim he had touched them inappropriately. To me, this is not something to be ignored and not something I take lightly. However, this is an election battle like no other and I’d like to remind voters that Donald Trump is not free of accusations like these either. In fact, at least 17 women have come up to accuse Trump of these charges and many people have freely ignored this. It must be recognized that sadly, neither candidate has a good history in this regard and not voting because of this will do nothing to change this horrifying reality.
I hope through this letter, you recognize not all hope is lost. I realize Sanders was an extremely popular candidate and praised by many. However, one candidate still presents plans that can help America achieve a better future than the one Donald Trump has planned. Biden can help America remove the disgraceful presidency by appealing to voters across the political spectrum, not just the far left. Lastly, through his experience as Vice President, Biden presents the necessary experience to serve as a functioning president having witnessed Barack Obama through a successful presidency.
I hope you consider voting for the new democratic nominee Joe Biden in hopes of not repeating the errors of the 2016 election.
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