The Tuesday night election results were filled with high emotions. Some were happy with the results excited for changing the way politics work forever, while others feared of what would become of their future. I, personally was among those upset with the results, knowing that he won based on hurtful comments towards different minority groups and promising a change to go back to a time that never existed. So when I heard that people were feeling the same heartbreaking, anger as myself and were exercising that oh so always mentioned freedom of speech by protesting the election I was all for it. I wanted to be a part of the protest voicing my opinion and showing that I cared about what was happening in this country, but as the protests rolled through Wednesday and Thursday and I missed them because of prior commitments I felt that I would just have to fight the cause through speech and twitter.
Then on Friday night as I was coming home from the Georgia State basketball game, walking to my dorm I got excited. I saw a huge mass of police cars blocking off a road. I asked someone walking past me what was going on and they said a trump protested was walking through Georgia State. As I watched a mass of people walking together down the block shouting for justice and unity, my heart raced and I started to run. I ran to catch up with the crowd of people who were fighting the same fight I so desperately wanted to belong to. I ran harder than I had ran in months. When I joined the protest I was shocked and amazed at what I saw. I witnessed people from all different backgrounds, genders, and sexual orientations out there. I looked into the crowd expecting it to be filled with minorities such as myself (I am half African-American and Caucasian) but what touched me the most was that the majority of the crowd was white. Yes, there was diversity but it was as much diversity as a SEC school and for once I was happy with it. The white majority filled crowd walked through the streets of Atlanta making it known that these are our streets and we will not stand for inequality.
They were young and old all from what seemed like different backgrounds. They were going against the stereotype and majority white vote that Donald Trump had and they were doing it with a passion. They were holding signs saying Black Lives Matter, No racism, Equality For All, and White Silence Is Violence. As I walked I heard them chant over and over again “Black Lives Matter!” and “No Trump, No hate, No racist USA!” with so much emotion, they understood what so many African-Americans were feeling due to the results of the election and it was as if they were reaching out invisible arms reaching towards them to reassure that they were not alone and we were going to fight through this together. I was filled with thankfulness and love.
As the protest went past the plaza and towards the capital I screamed in unison with them, making sure that my voice was heard no matter if someone was listening or not because I knew that I was not alone. As we gathered at a four way stop a block away from the capital the chants grew louder. A circle began to form and people started to burn their trump signs and hand out safety pins. When I asked the girl who handed me one what it was for she said, “Whenever you feel alone and you see someone with a safety pin on their shirt then you can go to them because you are not alone and that person is there to keep you safe”. I was amazed by the unity. I almost cried as I walked because it hit me, even though the majority of the caucasian population voted for Trump they did not all feel that way. I had been scared that maybe as a people we had not moved as far away from racism and discrimination as I thought and that maybe white America really did white-lash at the progress made by voting for trump but I was wrong. They do not all feel that way and that protest gave me hope and I saw that we as minorities were not alone in this fight there are people who see our struggle and are fighting with us. I know that we are all fighting the same fight and that is for progress and equality. Trump cannot take that away from us. He can try to create laws to hold one minority group back but we will all come together and show that group they are not alone in this fight he will not succeed. That protest showed what true patriotism and American values are and that is unity and equality while exercising the rights given to us in the Constitution.