This Presidential election is set to be a historic one, but it’s not because of how close of a race it is or because it’s the first election where a woman is the nominee for a major political party. Really, what makes it so historic is what is at stake.
At this point in the race, each candidate has had ample time to defend themselves and argue why they should be America’s new President. However, the words of one candidate in particular has done more than just bring out their supporters.
To list each group that Republican nominee Donald Trump has insulted during his campaign would likely take up the rest of this article, and several more could be filled up by all those specific offenses. If Trump has succeeded at anything in this campaign, it’s in bringing out the worst in people by sharing what he thinks of our fellow residents. Â
Donald Trump already has a plan in mind as to what he would do in his early days in office, which sheds light on how extremely close (and scary) that possibility is. If he were to begin his term as President in January, based on everything he has expressed to and about the American people, it is set to be, perhaps, the most frightening time in our history. With Trump as our President, we can expect a land filled with inexplicable hate, prejudice, and discrimination. In other words, a very large contrast to what we have now.
When you take a look at our nation’s history, you see that we have been working towards societal inclusiveness for a very long time. However, it is still a work in progress that has met success only as of late. The Civil Rights Act was passed a mere 52 years ago and it hasn’t even been 100 years since women were given the right to vote, a then huge step in women’s rights. In a Trump Presidency, we could very well have a man in power who not only is representative of why we needed these acts in the first place, but someone who could possibly ignore these and many rules. Surely, he wouldn’t take these rights away (let’s hope), but if the President is supposed to be someone whom we believe in, trust, and look up to, are we really comfortable giving Donald Trump that kind of influence, an even greater one than he currently holds?
Nowadays, it’s not impossible to encounter the type of people Donald Trump has targeted with his rhetoric. Because of this, it’s brings up a whole host of questions. Would a country led by Trump allow you to act on fear and skip tipping your Muslim waiter simply because of an inbred aversion of their faith? Would it make you want to buy a higher fence, or as he would prefer, a wall, to block out your Latino neighbor? Would you feel entitled to offhandedly belittle or assault any woman that came your way for the sole reason of them being a woman? I would imagine (and hope) not, but there are many people that would have no reservations in doing so when their leader is a person who engages in similar behavior so easily.
As a system, we’re flawed, there’s no denying that fact. But there is no need to weaken us further by making it so acceptable to behave in such an inhumane way to these groups of people being targeted.
It’s said that a good reputation takes years of effort to develop and that one wrong move can bring it all crashing down. Ours as a nation is no different, and every four years we have to decide which move we will make to strengthen it, not turn things around for the worst. To deny the progress and success we have made would not only be illogical, it would be an embarrassment and we are so much better than that.
Undecided voter or not, it seems that by now everyone has formed something of an opinion on our two major-party Presidential candidates. Whether we like it or not, each has plenty of supporters that will defend their candidate of choice to the end. No matter how much we may disagree or not understand, it’s important to respect each other. However, we must not give in to fear mongering and pick up the negative remarks and ideology that Donald Trump has so easily based his campaign on.
We are days away from electing our new President. Our new Commander-in-Chief. Our new leader for the next four (or possibly eight) years. We, as a united people, cannot allow the win to go to someone that will backtrack us on all of the progress we have made since our country’s founding. All eligible Americans have not only an important decision, but a responsible decision to make, and for the sake of everyone residing in what many people consider to be the greatest nation in the world, we cannot afford to make the incorrect choice.