I will never understand Trump supporters

As Election Day is fast approaching, we hold our breaths out of fear and uncertainty for what awaits us. A sudden anxiety overcomes me, not only in thinking about Trump’s possible win, but in seeing what our world has already become.

After the unexpected turn of Brexit, what lies ahead is unnerving, especially in today’s already unpredictable and irrational world.

I have seen Trump appear countless of times on my newsfeed, his name making bold headlines about the next outrage, the next obscenity. After a while his despicable behaviour stopped being surprising. Yet, I have told myself repeatedly to contain my anger and disappointment. But it’s still a very deep concern of mine when I see the increasing number of people who fervently support Trump.

I’ve heard it all. The racist bile, the unapologetic invective about women, Hispanics, Muslims, Jews, disabled people… the list goes on. Not only is it exhausting hearing this, but it has made me sick to my core knowing that this type of disgusting rhetoric still exists. Yet, his sons, daughters and wife are condoning his behaviour amongst the tens and thousands of people supporting him in America, and the world. They are holding ‘pussies grab back’ signs at political rallies, they are marching outside Trump tower and they are exchanging hi-fives and cheering while watching him spew vulgarity on TV.

Well, this is what I have to say to you Trump supporters: If you support Trump, you must think it’s okay for a father to say he would date his daughter. If you support Trump, you must think it’s acceptable to call your Latina neighbour ‘Miss Housekeepin’”, brushing off this misogynist remark as mere “locker-room talk”. If you support Trump, you must also think all Muslims are terrorists, Mexicans are rapists and that women are pigs and slobs. And who knows, maybe you’d like to make fun of the disabled kid in your class too? If you support Trump,, you think it’s perfectly okay to mock a dead war veteran who sacrificed his life in a war fighting for your country.

Donald Trump is the shining emblem of white male supremacy that has persisted for centuries. He is the reincarnation of fascists like Hitler, who was made notorious for persecuting all kinds of people. Populist discourse is on its rise again, and Trump is injecting infectious bile and hate onto populace all over the country.

It is easy to divert the blame onto others who are different because of the colour of their skin and the language they speak. And no, they didn’t ‘steal’ anybody’s job. No one should ever feel small. No one should ever be talked down and walked all over by a cowardly monster who climbed up the presidential race using threats, verbal and sexual abuse, and towering piles of cash.

Think about the world we want to live in. Think about what we want to create for us and for our children. What are you going to tell your sons and daughters when they are being laughed at in school because they are told they are ‘different’?

This is not the time to be silenced. This is the time to think about what you believe in. And if your belief is that Trump is the answer, then you have betrayed all of us.