The elephant in the room: I’m a Trump supporter at one of America’s most liberal universities

As a 20-year-old sorority girl, there aren’t many topics that I don’t discuss. I’m a very open person. I probably share way too much about myself, if I’m being honest. Yet, there is one thing I refuse to discuss with almost anyone, especially here at the University of Michigan: I am a Republican.

Before you jump to any conclusions, let me explain myself. I have been a Republican, a political conservative, for as long as I can remember. I was raised in a fiscally conservative, religious home on the south-side of Chicago, another very liberal area. I believe in the idea that I should be able to keep most, if not all of my hard-earned money. I also believe in stricter border control, drug control, and less government interference in my everyday life. In my mind, drug testing should be mandatory for people on welfare, and unemployment and abortion should only be reserved for extreme cases of danger to the mother, rape, or incest.  

Now, here’s the answer to the question that has probably been running through your mind: yes, I did vote for Donald Trump to be president. I do not agree with every single one of his policies or actions, but he was the candidate that lined up with my values. No, I am not a racist, bigot, idiot, or an uneducated hillbilly (yes, I’ve been called all of these things). I fight for diversity and inclusion everyday. I am an engineer, and I fight for women to be treated as equals in the engineering world as a member of the Society of Women Engineers.

Notice how I asked you not to judge me. This thought runs through my head every single time people ask me my opinion on politics here at UMich, or every time the tell-tale GOP elephant sticker is visible on my laptop. Being a Republican and Trump supporter, I have never felt more unwarranted hatred towards me. In the course of the last few months, I have had people call me a f***ing idiot, a bigot, and so many other nasty words that don’t describe me. I’ve had people who I’ve called close friends say terrible things about me, just because of who I voted for. Instead of celebrating Trump’s election or his inauguration, I sat in my room bawling on the phone to my mom about how I’m being shamed for expressing my constitutional right to vote. When President Schlissel stated at his speech at the November 9th post-election vigil that the 90% of students who voted for Hillary Clinton were “on the right side of history,” I died even more inside. The President of my university just declared my vote and my personal opinion to be on the wrong side of history. Instead of preaching about dialogues and open communication from differing opinions, the University of Michigan practiced exclusion by alienating those who voted for Trump.

You may not agree with me, but you must agree that being a Republican and Trump supporter on campus is not an easy task. I am constantly suppressing my opinions to avoid be heckled or ridiculed. Honestly, I tried to hide the fact that I voted for Trump from most people, until now.  By alienating , ridiculing, and shunning any opinions about Trump, the University has fostered an environment that’s the exact opposite of that which is says it creates, creating a divided and exclusive campus environment for anyone who doesn’t agree with the typical college liberal point of view.

Whether you hate every word that I’ve written in this article, completely agree with me, or anything in between, remember that we are all people and deserve to be treated with respect. Next time you turn to call that Trump supporter a bigot, imagine how you would feel if the roles were reversed.