Stand

I finally woke up at 10:30am this morning, November 9th. I had ignored my normal alarms that I have set for Wednesdays, because I just wasn’t sure how to face the world, the challenges, the heartache, and the overwhelming sense of fear that so many of the American people face.

Now, to make this clear, my blog reflects my opinion, which is strongly liberal from a political standpoint. However, even with that said, all the issues that I took with Donald Trump were not always political in nature. Far from disagreeing with him on many of the issues, I took issue with his demeanor, his braggadocio, his lack of transparency, and his overall treatment of so many groups in our country.

That’s why it was hard to face the world this morning. It was hard to face the world knowing that the United States had elected someone who went against not our different political beliefs, but against the moral beliefs that we have tried so hard to instill in everyone.

I know, however, that any fear and doubts that I have are significantly eclipsed by those who have truly been affected by Trump’s words and actions. Those who are Latinx, Muslim, African-American, LGBTQIA, female, disabled, supporters of the right to free speech and expression, and so many others have been hurt mentally and sometimes physically by the whole of the campaign. And today, November 9th, they woke up to more than just “not wanting to get out of bed”.

Which leads me to the title of my post: “Stand”. Why this one word? Because it may just be the most important thing we do now. The President, Senate, and House of Representatives have all been elected now, and barring major controversies, they will stay constant for some time. So now it is time for us to stand with each other. To stand with those who feel shut out of America now, to stand against injustice, to stand up and say that we will treat all people, regardless of who they are, with the respect and dignity and love that they deserve, because those ideas throughout America’s lifespan have been the true cornerstone of greatness.

Today, November 9th, there are many Americans who have woken up wondering about what their future holds for them and their families. Let us stand with them.

Jacob