I am sad. I am worried, maybe even a little frightened. This election for me was not about glass ceilings. Would it have been nice? Of course it would have, but deep down, I had my doubts that this country was truly ready to accept her. I listened and watched the way our current president has been disrespected. I looked across the world and saw how Australia treated their first female prime minister, Julia Gillard. Sexism and a marked lack of respect polluted her service to her country. In ours, where women are still fighting to receive equal pay for their work, where an off the cuff joke such as "repeal the 19th" can go viral and be taken quasi-seriously- it's not time yet. Secretary Clintonhas broken barriers, and broken ground...but there is still some paving to be done before that path is smooth and clear.
For me, and others, I suspect, this election was not about Trump and Clinton. For me it was about my right to equal pay. The right to be free in my choice of what I do with my body. The rights for my gay and lesbian friends to shop where they want, to marry whomever they want, live the way they want. The rights for my friends to practice their faith, no matter what it is, without fear or recrimination. My belief that the Earth that we live on is fragile and in danger. One campaign preached tolerance, the other preached hate and fear. Unfortunately, the hate won. Perhaps that was a secondary concern in the minds of the people who voted for Mr. Trump. I hope so. I pray that our President Elect is a far more tolerant and respectful man than the campaign he ran led us to believe.
Our country was yelling for change. It shouldn't have been a surprise. The rise of Bernie Sanders had told us this and my party didn't listen. The Republicans perhaps had a little more of a clue. Class anger is a real thing. I get it. I'm one of the low men on the totem pole. I struggle to keep my family's head above water. I don't know the meaning of disposable income. It doesn't exist for me. Washington hasn't done all that much for me personally, but it has done good things. It has protected rights and taken small steps towards protecting our planet, but it was a fight each and every time. Washington has gotten log jammed, a bit big for its britches. With our new President Elect, a man that is not a politician, there is the possibility of an opportunity for a positive wake up call. I'm fine with that, if it's in the best interest of we, the people. Not just the 1%, but the 99% as well. However there is also the very real possibility that any shake up has a negative impact. Those good things, those rights that have been awarded in recent years, could be taken away. It's not such a stretch when our new Vice President Elect has a 0% record when voting for LGBT rights, when it is his state that first put the Religious Freedom Act into place. Perhaps he learned from the fallout of that. We can hope. We must hope.
It's a hard job to try and make us all happy and keep us safe, and he wanted it. Half of the voting public wanted him to have it and so they entrusted the job to him. It's the same every four years. Half the country is happy, the other half upset but this time it's different. This time we really don't know what we've done. We literally have no idea what to expect from a Trump presidency. He is unpredictable, and he is our President Elect. I may not like it, and I truly don't, but I have to respect it. This is our republic. This is how the system works. The peaceful transfer of power has been a phrase that has been bandied about frequently over the past few days and it is time to put that into practice. Yes, this is not my choice for president, but like it or not, the electorate has spoken and it is now time to start learning how to work together. I am going to join Secretary Clinton in her hope that Mr. Trump will be a "successful president for all Americans.... we owe him an open mind and a chance to lead." Out of respect for her, and out of respect for our Constitution, I'm going to do my best to honor that reminder. Perhaps even stronger than her words, which moved me immeasurably, I was struck by her appearance. One comment I saw on Facebook was laughing that she was wearing funeral bunting colors-purple and black. I saw something different. I saw in her choice of the color purple a statement on the way we need to move forward. Purple. Red and blue together, The way we need to learn how to operate.
Saying all of this however, does not mean that I am not going to be watching. If nothing else, this election has taught me the importance of an informed electorate. I read more, looked up more facts, and turned to new and different sources for information than I ever have before. I came to understand what issues are truly important to me at my most basic levels. In her concession speech, Secretary Clinton reminded us that "our constitutional democracy demands our participation, not just every four years but all the time.So let's do all we can to keep advancing the causes and values we all hold dear, making our economy work for everyone...protecting our country and protecting our planet and breaking down the barriers that hold any American back from achieving their dreams." With those words in mind, I'm committing to myself and to whomever reads this that I'm going to do my part, starting now. I'm going to continue to educate myself and I'm going to get involved in the causes that perhaps may need some defense right now. There are volunteer opportunuties out there and I'm going to find one. It's not enough anymore to say that I want things to change, the time has come to be a part of it and to make it happen. To quote her one more time, "Fighting for what's right is worth it."
