I don’t know about you, but this year for me has been quite a rollercoaster of emotions when it comes to politics. The one year mark has now approached, the one year mark of Trump’s controversial presidential victory over Hillary Clinton. I remember being in this spot one year ago, filled with grief, anger, sadness, disbelief, and hopelessness on November 9th. I remember wishing that at the very least, Trump’s extreme language was just a by-product of the intense campaign and that he wouldn’t follow through on anything too detrimental.
Here we are, a year later. It’s hard to avoid Trump’s seemingly everyday news-blasts and tweets, but in case you have succeeded in avoiding it all, I just want to touch upon the highlights of the presidency that come to mind when thinking about this past year.
Joking about hanging LGBTQIA+ folk:
Even writing this title hurts my soul on a new level. In a New Yorker article outlining the dangers of Mike Pence possibly becoming president, there’s a quote in which Trump said ‘jokingly,’ that people shouldn’t talk to Mike Pence about gay people because “he wants to hang them all!” Our president willingly chose a vice president that has these beliefs. Now, Pence never outwardly said that exact sentence, but we all know from his past that Pence is extremely anti-LGBT, and he never vocally stated that what Trump said about him wanting to hang gay people was wrong or incorrect. THAT’S A PROBLEM, FOLKS!! I feel like this is something that got glossed over, but it’s also something that needs to be addressed. How is it okay that our president is saying these things against a very prominent group in America?
Trump and his administration claiming his inauguration was the most attended in history:
This one literally occurred the moment he was sworn into office, which wasn’t surprising to me at all. Sean Spicer, Trump’s (former) Press Secretary claimed out of all the inaugurations in history, Trump’s was the most attended inauguration! This was most likely stated in response to the millions of people protesting him, especially at the Women’s March. Three times the amount of people attended the Women’s March than the inauguration, which is an astonishing fact! Also, the picture comparing Obama’s inauguration and Trump’s inauguration is hilarious when considering Spicer’s claim.
Muslim Travel Ban:
So Trump attempted to ban immigrants from seven different Middle Eastern countries from coming to America in an effort to prevent ISIS attacks in the future. This includes refugees fleeing from these countries. This ban got a lot of criticism mostly because of the fact Trump was turning his back on the refugees that need us the most. Also, to ban someone based on their outward appearance and religion is really discriminatory and unfair, and essentially that is what he is doing here.
Transgender Military Ban:
Trump came up with this idea to create a policy that would ultimately ban transgender folks from being allowed to enlist in the military. When I saw this pop up on my CNN notification for the first time, I literally felt my heart drop and all the feelings I had from the day he was elected came back. His basis for this change was that being transgender is too expensive for the military to cover, which is not a valid basis to block a whole group of people on. It was extremely discriminatory and was eventually blocked from becoming reality.
These are just a few things that come immediately to mind, and topics that I feel are recurring themes in the news right now. We need to remember that even though it’s been a year and it seems like there is less resistance around, we can’t let our fight song fade away. We can’t forget all the atrocities that Trump and his administration are trying to get away with, and we can’t give up standing for what we believe in.
A year ago, I was filled with hope on November 8th, 2016. I was hoping that our new candidate would stand for all the things I believe in, and that she would make a difference in my life and the lives of millions of others. But today, November 8th, 2017, I’m not filled with hope. I’m filled with determination. Determination that I will be the one to stand up for what I believe in. Determination that I will make a difference in not only my own life, but the lives of others, too. If you feel the same, don’t forget everything you’ve learned in this past year, stay mad and stay determined.