It has been two weeks since I last blogged. I had planned to write my blog last week immediately following the election, all cozied up in my room, content with the future of my country. I had planned to be comforted with the idea that with the election of Hillary Clinton, the glass ceiling had effectively been shattered, and that the opportunities for women leaders would be more plentiful than ever before. I had planned to talk about what this meant for my own future, and the sense of relief I felt for the fact that Trump had not been elected. Instead, the truly unexpected results of the election left my friends and I in a depressive state, unable to believe that the majority of our country had elected a man that blatantly espoused hate speech. Reflecting on this, the election is really not that surprising; however, the numerous articles that I had read for my politics class had assured me, on a statistical base, that he would not become President. I had reassured my friends with this information throughout the day, only to be proved wrong. As the results became definite, my friends and I wept for the future of the country. We had gone to a Hillary viewing party, and even brought champagne. It went unpopped.
In the days following the results, campus was more mournful than I had ever seen it been previously. Yet, students slowly got back to work, organizing and protesting and talking to professors about what we could do. I was lucky that the election occurred during a lull in my classes; I was able to take the time to have important conversations about what this election meant for my family, and loved ones in my own life.
If anything, this election has made me think that I have to plan things in the more short-term, and I should be ready to work twice as hard for what I want. It has made me ready to advocate against the deportation of individuals, as the possibility of Sanctuary Cities goes away. I have looked up modes of self-defense, as well as how to intervene if I see harassment going on. I’m most nervous to go home and to have unpleasant conversations with my family members, who voted Trump. The election has brought an unprecedented amount of personal strain in my own life, moreso than if a ‘typical’ republican candidate had been elected.
In terms of career development, the process of pursuing a writing career seems dismal, and pointless, in the wake of the results. After all, America just let one of the more inarticulate men I’ve ever seen become president- what’s the value in writing, if shouting will just get you what you want? I’m trying to not let this mindset overcome me, and will try to dedicate my writing skills towards fighting Trump, whatever that may look like. I hope that my politics major will be helpful on this front as well.
