A principle of democracy is that governments rule by the consent of the governed. So what are we to do with a president who doesn’t respect the concept of consent?
Donald Trump, who ran a campaign that closely resembled an insult comic tour — ‘Tired Jeb,’ ‘Little Marco,’ ‘Lyin Ted’ and ‘Crooked Hillary’ — is unavoidably our next president.
While we must accept the results of the electoral college, we need not acquiesce to the buffoonery and bigotry that Trump has spewed. Simply accepting the results and “coming together as Americans” is an insult to the sexual assault survivors and minorities who have been targeted by the chauvinist, racist and xenophobic language of Trump.
While President-elect Trump may be a diluted version of his acerbic campaign persona, we need to be vigilant against the policies he has embraced and make sure his regime does not undermine democracy and lead us down the path to fascism.
Trump’s campaign statements and 100 day plan contain specific policies that we the people simply cannot accept.
Mr. President, we won’t let you discriminate against people based on their religion.
We cannot accept federal policies that discriminate against people based on their religion. Parts of Trump’s proposed immigration policies explicitly and unabashedly dismiss the ideals of our country, which was founded by people escaping religious persecution and guarantees freedom of religion as a constitutional right.
Mr. President, we won’t let you commit war crimes.
We cannot let Trump fulfill his promise to bomb alleged terrorists without regard for civilian casualties or reinstate torture as American policy. The American people and U.S. military cannot adopt Trump’s flippant approach toward international law and the Geneva Conventions. Refusing to obey international laws will only reinforce the narratives of terrorist radicalization and undermine the security of our armed forces, our country and the world.
Mr. President, we won’t let you continue to harass, abuse, demean and objectify women.
We cannot allow Trump’s treatment of women to go unanswered. The willingness of the American electorate to choose a man who boasts about watching teenage girls changing clothes at beauty pageants, kissing women without permission and grabbing them “by the pussy” is utterly reprehensible. Forgiving these crimes and statements or writing them off as “locker room talk” is an insult to Trump’s victims and all victims of sexual assault.
Mr. President, we won’t let you ruin our environment.
We cannot allow Trump and his industry allies to roll back climate change agreements and open up a free-for-all for fossil fuel extraction in the United States. Withdrawing from the Paris Climate Change agreement and pushing forward the Keystone XL pipeline are but a few early indications of Trump’s potentially disastrous environmental policies. We cannot mortgage the inheritance of future generations for a chance at short-term profit.
Mr. President, we won’t let you deny the freedom of press.
We can not accept Trump’s unprecedented denial of access and threats to sue journalists who are critical of his campaign. These are direct attacks on the freedom of press that is the lifeblood of any democracy.
While this list of unacceptable behaviors is not comprehensive, it is representative of the
threats to the fundamental tenets of democracy and our nation that Trump’s presidency poses. In response to these threats to freedom and democracy, thousands of people nationwide have taken to the streets to express their opposition to Trump. This is a good start but it is just that — a start.
Moving forward, we need to stand in solidarity with those who have been targeted by Trump as we work to understand and respond to the legitimate concerns of people who voted for him. We can reject racism, misogyny and xenophobia while working to improve the lives of working class Americans and struggling industrial communities around the country.
We can no longer assume that the future we deserve is inevitable. We can no longer take for granted a forward march toward greater inclusion, equality and decency. We can no longer assume that everything will be OK. We must make it so.
We must decide what kind of a country we want to live in, envision the future we want for ourselves and future generations and then act to make sure that it comes true. We are a nation of dreamers and must remain so. We can no longer sleep through our destiny. It is time we awake our own agency and demand the world we deserve.