Well wasn’t that a whopper of an election? All around me people lay deflated and defeated, and in the words of many, “grieving” for the loss of the presidential position to Donald Trump. With their last breaths they are now speaking out in protest that this will destroy our country, send us into war, and deepen the divide among our citizens.
Some people, their sense of logic seemingly intact, have pointed out that people felt this way before. Specifically with the election of George W. Bush.
That can’t be. There was never such a sentiment. But much like the pain of labor, how easily we forget.
Exactly one week prior to the election, I started reading the book Hey Rube, by Hunter S. Thompson. There in what is supposed to be a collection of his sports columns was this prophetic passage:
“There is a sense of panic in the air, a silent fear and uncertainty that comes with once-reliable faiths and truths and solid institutions that are no longer safe to believe in. … There is a presidential election, right on schedule, but somehow there is no president. A new Congress is elected, like always, but somehow there is no real Congress at all—not as we knew it, anyway, and whatever passes for Congress will be as helpless and weak as whoever has to pass for the ‘New President.’”
How did he know? Ah, but he didn’t. He was referring of course to the 2000 Bush vs. Al Gore election, in which Bush won the presidency by winning the electoral vote while Gore won the popular vote. My how history repeats itself.
During that time people threatened to move to Canada. They feared Bush would take us into war (he did). There was talk about the election being rigged.
In many ways the presidential election is the same. In Hunter’s words about the Bush/Gore election: “The whole presidential election, in fact, was rigged and fixed from the start. It was a gigantic media event, scripted and staged for TV. It happens every four years, at an ever-increasing cost, and 90 percent of the money always goes for TV commercials.”
So sure, to those who say it’s happened before, I say, “I agree.” But also, this time it’s different. If you don’t think so visit a local school, where students are reporting harassment because of their race, ethnicity, or gender identity. Recently someone posted a picture on Snapchat of a folklorico performance at Righetti High School and making reference to Trump. This is not OK. However, it is exactly why people are protesting or grieving in their own way. It’s not because their candidate lost, it’s about what they fear this country is about to lose: its progress.
A part of me was proud that our president-elect appeared on 60 Minutes recently and among the things he said, he told his supporters to stop with the harassment. Only that feeling was short lived. It was a weak admonishment of a serious trend of hate and bigotry.
Whatever his policies are, whether they will bring jobs or war, gain us allies or enemies, strengthen or sink the economy, those are things we can live through—just like we did with Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. But if we allow our country to go backward and undo all the progress we’ve made, we will no longer be one nation that is indivisible and there will be no liberty and justice for all.
The Canary is hoping the president can bring this country together again. Send comments to canary@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Nov 17-24, 2016.