Me

Me

Monday, November 7, 2016

Word

   

So, when I was in high school and undergrad I loved those class discussions about World War II. They always fascinated me and the older and more studied I became there was always something about the events and circumstances that I just could not understand and it always stemmed from the same idea that has ruminated in my head since I first thought it in eight grade. So it was with that idea rattling around in my brain that I went about studying the subject. It was with great relief when I realized in my first graduate seminar on the topic, that it was an actual academic issue that colored many scholar's study of the Holocaust more specifically than just World War II. That issue being, who was at fault. The German government or the whole country, every person. What always fascinated me in earlier classes was how quickly other students would feign disgust at the idea that people could so idly sit by while their neighbors were being massacred. And I always refrained from giving my opinion on it, because there are many circumstances involved and the one thing you cannot ever do use hindsight as justification in determining your moral fiber. The honest truth is that no one knows what they would have done in 1933 Germany, 1937 Germany, 1944 Germany and so on and so forth. We can be disgusted about what happened, we can question why opposition was so low, (Gestapo was effective, people ratted out their neighbors, as American's we do not give enough credit to resistance fighters because it takes away from our own narrative as the hero, and so on and so forth) and we most certainly can be abhorred that people participated. But, there is one thing no one can say with certainty and that is, "Well, I would never have stood for/done/accepted/participated.....in said event." The only thing that you will ever know is what you are doing in the present and what you personally did in the past.


That being said, we are on the last day of our current presidential election cycle and for me, speaking out against someone I think is truly dangerous, not only to my family, but to our democracy, to our history, to our rights, and to our freedoms is pretty damn important. I keep seeing people on Facebook being upset that people are vocal about this election. That politics is just politics and people need to relax. And yes, that is usually true every four years and in all honesty the president actually has relatively little bearing on your every day world. However, and this is a giant HOWEVER, we have never had a presidential candidate so close to winning that continues insult women, demonize Muslims, harass immigrants, debase handicap people, threaten the future family of our LGBT citizens. At the very least this person will represent the American people to the world, and I for one am appalled that this rhetoric is accepted by one of the most influential political parties in the country. I am appalled that now, not one but two or the world's most popular religions are being insulted, since the Jewish community has been added to the list. We are a country with freedom of religion. I am appalled that the journalist of this country are being threatened, despite our freedom of the press which is our assurance that we will be informed, and that our government HAS to be transparent. I am personally angered for my Muslim family members, my immigrant friends, and anyone else who has been treated as a second class citizen by Mr. Trump. This is the time to speak out and it is my right. Sorry, but this is more important that showing pictures of my dog, food, husband, or whatever non-important thing I did last Saturday.


If you think it is OK because Mr. Trump is anti-establishment, think again. He has continually benefited from being a white, rich male. There is nothing anti-establishment about that, zero. He has never been on the outside looking in. He has benefited greatly from our political system, tax system, justice system, economic system, and popular culture form of entertainment. We do not get to throw human decency out the window because we feel like we are getting screwed by a government your friends and neighbors voted for 2, 4, or 6 years ago. But what I can tell you, what is an immediate threat for me, is this nugget of knowledge that effects me personally EVERY DAMN DAY. It is why I feel the need to speak out and it is why many others do as well.


             "The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, found at least 260 hate crimes targeting Muslims in 2015 ― nearly an 80 percent rise from 2014, and the greatest number of such crimes in any year since 2001.

              Researchers in that report also found an 87.5% increase in hate crimes against Muslims in the days directly following Trumps proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S."


*(http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lawyers-blame-alt-right-for-clients-death-threats-against-muslims_us_581c9e9be4b0e80b02c93e24)


What bothers me immediately is that despite being 2016, we still live in a nation that still espouses a certain type of rape culture where men feel permitted to even comment on a woman's body. (ahem Harvard Soccer team) To the point where it is just peachy keen that we have a presidential candidate who does it on a regular basis and it is dismissed as nothing but a boys will be boys mentality. A mentality that makes it A-okay for rape victims to be blamed or dismissed because, "they drank too much," or "wore slutty cloths."


Because, here is the deal. WORDS HAVE POWER. Words have the power to vilify, words have the power to shame, and worst of all words have the power to act as agency in the expression of anger, real or manufactured. A shift in our culture is not a license to suspend the rights of minorities, religious or color of skin or sexual orientation. A shift in our demographic population does not give us a right to harden our hearts against our fellow citizens casting aside a group of people as second class citizens. The only person who made this election personal is the one on the ballot tomorrow. So yes, with so much at stake, I will speak out. I will post about it on Facebook. You should feel uncomfortable with him, we all should feel uncomfortable with this. Listen, we need a working Republican/Conservative Party. That is not the issue here. This is not about being a conservative or a liberal. I am disgusted for my die hard Republican friends who are suffering through the agony of this election cycle knowing they cannot vote for this man. At this point it is about human decency. What is the issue is the fact that right now a narcissistic demagogue is the face of that party. We cannot allow any more hate to permeate our great experiment. We cannot let this man become the suicide of our democracy. My family deserves better and so does yours. And I can live with myself in 2016 and the fact that I did speak out against Donald Trump's hatred. I know where I stand today in the face of someone threatening my family, friends, and fellow citizens.

No comments:

Post a Comment