“Why don’t these people stop protesting?”
After the election of Donald Trump by the people/the electoral college, there have been a number of Trump supporters who do not understand why people are protesting. If you lean left politically and are surrounded by like-minded individuals, you may not understand this. However, for those of us who know, or share DNA with, people who are Trump supporters, it won’t be unheard of for those people to be complaining about protesters.
A few things come across when I hear these statements. First of which is that as Americans, we have a First Amendment right to protest. It can be confusing for our country to so strictly interpret the Second Amendment right to bear arms and not hold freedom of speech to the same standard, especially when gun crimes take so many lives, and freedom of speech does not. The First Amendment is the pillar of our democracy and protesting is exercising this important right.
For those right-wingers thinking “duh,” I wanted to give you this reminder as a segway into the meaty reasons as to why people are protesting.*
- He does not come across as presidential in the vain sense. It is true he has no political experience so it can be understood that his speeches won’t sound as rehearsed, but all too many people believe that he looks like a “cheeto.” This is a far cry from the days of JFK. If you think this sounds stupid, remember that Nixon lost to JFK due to his appearance on the their last debate. Appearance aside, he has sounded belligerent during debates – not something you even want to look at for 4 years.
- He has bragged about sexually assaulting women and has had numerous women claiming that he has acted inappropriately towards them. Sure, they may be allegations but when they come in massive numbers, at least some of them statistically have to be true. Look at Bill Cosby. Also, studies have shown that 95% and upwards of sexual assault allegations are proven to be true.
- Having the KKK on your side is never a good sign. Republicans can say all they want that Trump did not want this support but if the KKK supports your ideal, then there is a problem.
Unfortunately, if I were to list out all of the reasons, this would no longer be a blog post but a book. I think it is important to remember that even if you voted for Trump, you CAN still be a good person, but more than half of the election voters (get it, because Clinton won the popular vote?) is simply upset because you voted for a person who represents racist, misogynistic, xenophobic ideals. If you supported him, even for reasons that you think are the “right reasons,” you encouraged a way of thinking towards our fellow humans that may set us back 50 years. If you believe this, then being angry and ready to protest is the most natural reaction!
*Note: This is a post about Donald Trump and not about Hilary Clinton. For those who may think that this post is intended to place Clinton on a pedestal, this is not my intention. This post is an explanation of why people have felt compelled to protest against Trump.
Petite Activist 