Now, let's talk about how the United States is a free country, where every citizen is allowed to vote freely, and sometimes, that vote is a very difficult choice to make. So many people are making generic statements that the country is backwards, full of hate, and shameful; that everyone who voted for Trump must have those qualities, too.
Sure, there are many people who exercised their civic right - and duty - yesterday who are ignorant, racist, sexist, and [insert -ist here]. And it is sad, that in 2016, those are still qualities we are battling. Minority groups have a right to be nervous. Trump has said some incredibly worrisome things. However, some of those Trump voters are not -ists, and we have to hope they will continue to protect all the citizens of this country.
They are people who believe in a lower tax code. They are people who believe life begins at conception. They are people who are just used to voting Republican. They are people who felt they were stuck between a rock and hard place, because let's face it, most people didn't actually want EITHER candidate. Voting for Trump was not an easy decision to make, and it wasn't a light one.
Some voters went through the same mental hula hoops and decided to vote for Hillary. They are people who also believe life begins at conception, but right now they'd rather see job development. They are people who wanted to support the first female candidate, even though they have always voted Republican and don't agree with a thing she says.
Some voted for another candidate, "third party" (although more than three parties were represented on the ballot, so why is that the term?) Some of these voted because they simply couldn't bring themselves to vote for either major party candidate. Some of these voted because they truly believed in Johnson, Stein, or McMullin. Some believe in a broader, more inclusive voting system. Many people have vocalized that these voters were not thinking of the future, and how dare they have cost Hillary this election and put the whole country at risk in Trump's hands. But what if these voters have a different future in mind? A future where Republican and Democrat don't exist? Where competition is healthy and not a matter of picking sides? That may be a different political future than you have an interest in or have thought about, but it's a valid goal for the future nonetheless.
Voting isn't easy and it isn't simple. If it was, having the right to vote wouldn't be such an achievement. We cannot let the right that brought our country together, tear our country apart. It has done so in the past by excluding people of different races and sexes. Don't let it continue to do so out of ignorance and unrighteous anger.
Everyone is never going to agree - on anything. From brussels sprouts to immigration, people will always have varying opinions. We cannot change that, but what we can change is how we address differences. We can change how we treat others, and how we start a conversation. We can change the beginning of our sentences from "I disagree" to "Tell me why you think that." We have to get to the heart of each and every issue. This surface level engagement is killing us.
If you were dissatisfied with the results of this election, don't let all your energy go into being upset. Utilize it to figure out a way to prevent this from happening four years from now. What steps can each of us take to improve what we believe to have been the flaws in voters, and in the candidates?
Are people uneducated? Fix that.
Are people stubborn? Fix that.
Are people hungry? Fix that.
There is much to fix in our country, and while the president is partly responsible for that, we the people must be effective change makers, too. But first, before we can fix anything, we need to each fix ourselves.
I look forward to the next four years. I look forward to seeing what we each fix. I still believe in the people - and the future - of The United States of America.
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