I am sure by now, no matter whom we are planning to vote for this election, we each have our own grievances with both candidates. In this article I am not stating my stance on either candidate. These are real, valid concerns, no matter what candidate you are voting for this election. Instead of telling you who to vote for, I am lodging my two main grievances on Trump’s excuse of the 2005 Access Hollywood Tape as ‘just locker room talk’:
- Trump claims that saying, “I grab women by the p*ssy” is just ‘locker room talk’ and all boys talk this way. You know the saying ‘boys will be boys.’ Recently though, famous athletes such as Jamal Crawford, CJ McCollum, Robbie Rogers, Sean Doolittle, Chris Kluwe, Kendall Marshall, and several others have posted on social media saying they are greatly offended by this statement. They state they would never talk this way and have never heard language like this in any locker room of theirs. Thus, when Trump claims this language is okay and used often in a locker room setting, he is demeaning men. Sure I am not naïve, I understand that many men talk about women. Men, we women do it too. But what we talk about is consensual. On the other hand, what Trump claims, as his version of ‘locker room talk’ is disgusting and actually the fundamental definition of sexual assault.
- My second point is many of Trump’s supporters have said this video is no longer relevant. Why is this no longer relevant? Yes, Trump was not a presidential candidate in 2005 when he made this remark and it was many years ago. Thus, his banter could be considered inconsequential. However, 9 women have come forward and described experiencing this exact type of behavior where he made unwanted advances on them. He says he’s changed but in your experience, folks, do old dogs learn new tricks? He was 59 when the video was recorded, give me a break. He hasn’t changed. In fact here are some of the latest things he’s said while running for presidency: “Mexicans are rapists.” “I wouldn’t have done that to her, look at her face, no thank you,” “Miss Piggy,” and “you could see there ways blood coming out of her eyes, blood wherever.” He calls people names and thinks it makes him a bigger person. Trump, I can belittle you too and call you the “Big Orange Man with Small Hands” But that doesn’t make me a bigger person.
Essentially, he is still an insulting individual and what he says reinforces the idea of patriarchy and nativism. Whether he should or should not be a candidate for president is a different issue. The issue here that Donald brought up is still very much a problem in this country today. We have to question what we accept and how our words can lead to dangerous actions and dangerous acceptance of the status quo. I appreciate the fact that he brought to national stage an issue we are dealing with in everyday life. The present dialogue from this surfaced video has led to much discussion and push back. Thus we are beginning to question what we accept, but as the next future leaders, it is our responsibility to continue to question our words as much as our actions. Because ultimately doesn’t one usually lead to the other?