Well, here we are. Donald Trump has been sworn in as President of the United States. Arguably worse, the House, Senate and Supreme Court all have Republican majorities (The Court isn’t certain yet, but let’s be realistic about this). From the point of view of those concerned about women’s and LGBTQ rights, international relations, public health, scientific research, intellectual development, education, humanitarian efforts, general decency or the wellbeing of others, this is a disaster.
But you knew all that. The question now is: what can we do? We have put together a short list of actions you can take on campus to resist Trump and his agenda:
1. Support Safer and the Cross Cultural Center.
These two campus resources exist to support those who have traditionally been excluded from universities, women and people of color (PoC). Though, happily, this has changed significantly over the past 50 years, the progress thus far made is by no means guaranteed into the future. By going through Safer sexual violence awareness training, or learning about and attending events put on by the Pride Center, Multicultural Center, and Gender Equity Center—subcategories of the CCC—you can become an advocate for the people that the current administration is targeting. Educated solidarity with the people who are in greatest danger is essential to resisting hateful agendas.
2. Learn about the history of the United States.
Guess what? This election didn’t just happen out of nowhere. There are complicated and difficult-to-understand historical reasons behind our current political situation. History 201 and 202, offered here at Cal Poly, chronicle the development of the United States. Having this background information on our nation’s history is essential to making good decisions about its future development, and as future business, science, arts and policy leaders, we have a responsibility to know about this history. Additionally, any course offered by the Ethnic Studies or Social Sciences department will be of great help as well.
3. Learn about right and wrong.
Something hugely baffling about this election has been that Trump supporters in general believe themselves to be doing the right thing. It is very likely that they are not evil, not hateful and not even necessarily racist, but are just honestly confused about what is morally right and what is not. An important step forward, and especially important for future leaders and people in positions of power, is learning how to critically and logically evaluate our moral judgments. Two great classes on this topic, offered at Cal Poly, are Philosophy 231 and 331. These classes both regard moral philosophy, and will equip you with the skills you need to evaluate and better make moral judgments.
4. Participate in protests.
As important intellectuals like Howard Zinn and Noam Chomsky have observed, no matter the money and power wielded by a corrupt authority, the people always have the ability to protest (This provided that they are not in danger of direct violence, which for the time being, the American public does not seem to be). When women, PoC, the poor and workers organize to protest unjust, immoral policy, students ought to support them. When protests are planned on campus, go to them. When they are planned downtown, go to them. And if none are currently being planned, plan one.
5. Donate to organizations that promote important causes.
This is not really a possibility for perhaps the majority of university students. However, there are a lot of fairly wealthy individuals at Cal Poly. This applies to them, and to those of us who begin earning a comfortable salary after graduation. If you can spare the money, Planned Parenthood is a great organization to donate to. So are the Southern Poverty Law Center, American Civil Liberties Union, Oxfam and the Sierra Club.
There are other things we can do to oppose hateful and dangerous legislation, but this list offers a few things that can be done quickly and immediately. We hope you’ve found it helpful!