Dark Skies
Dark Skies
(Warning: there are some quotes in this piece with offensive language)
Yesterday, history was made in the United States. For the first time ever, Americans had the chance to cast their vote for a woman President.
(Warning: there are some quotes in this piece with offensive language)
Yesterday, history was made in the United States. For the first time ever, Americans had the chance to cast their vote for a woman President.
Hillary Rodham Clinton was the candidate
from the Democratic party. She has served the United States in being First Lady
in the state of Arkansas, being the First Lady of the United States, a senator
from the state of New York, and as Secretary of State in the Barack Obama
Presidential Administration. She is the first woman in history to be the final candidate for
the Presidency in any party.
History was also being made on the other
side of the U.S.’s two party system. Donald J. Trump was the candidate for
President on the Republican side. He has been a real estate mogul, and reality
TV show host. He has never held any kind of public office. He has never been a
city councilman, mayor, or dog catcher.
I awoke yesterday eager to get to my
polling place to vote. I was proud that I had the chance to vote for Hillary
Clinton;
I saw her as the most qualified candidate for the office. More than that, I was excited to cast my vote for a female president. It has been 96 years since women were given the right to vote in the United States.
I saw her as the most qualified candidate for the office. More than that, I was excited to cast my vote for a female president. It has been 96 years since women were given the right to vote in the United States.
The polls were open from 6am to 6pm
yesterday in Indiana to allow people to vote. Many voters across the country waited in
lines for hours to cast their vote.
I entered the booth, and read from a
sheet of instructions on the wall in front of me. Once I had read and
understood the directions, I took to my ballot. I voted Democrat down the
ballot, marking in one small oval with the black pen provided in the voting
booth.
I took a moment to note the name on the
ballot. There it was, in capital letters: “HILLARY CLINTON.” I wanted to fill
in the oval next to her name. However, if I were to do that, I would have
negated my ballot. I sighed with contentment, filled out the other side of the
ballot, and then put my ballot in the voting machine. I then got a sticker,
which said “My Vote My Voice.”
"Election Day Selfie" by Esperanza Habla
I then went home from the polling place
and went about my day.
I worked late yesterday evening, after
the polls closed in Indiana. I went home and turned on my television, awaiting
election results. I knew that a decision of a winner might be clear until this
morning. However, with so much on the line,
I had to watch.
I had to watch.
**************************************************************************
For me, the choice to vote for Hillary Clinton was clear. For those that are unaware, Donald Trump
has run the most hate filled campaign that I have witnessed in my lifetime.
He has called Mexicans rapists and
murderers. He wants Muslims to be entered into a national database and for them
to carry papers declaring their faith. He wants to close the borders to the
U.S. to all immigrants. He wants to build a wall between Mexico and the U.S. He
wants Mexico to pay for building the wall. He wants to close the door to Syrian
refugees. He wants to deport 12 million illegal immigrants on his first day of
office.
Regarding the LGBTQ population, he is very
against the community. He recently held up a rainbow pride flag at a public
event, to prove he was pro LGBT; however, he was holding the flag upside down. This showed his true lack of respect for
the community. His Vice President, Mike Pence, passed the Religious Freedom Restoration
Act in Indiana, which gave any business the right to discriminate on members of
the LGBT community based on your religious beliefs. The law was on the books
for 10 days. It cost the state of Indiana $60 million. They have assured
America that they are on the same page on this issue.
Mr. Trump’s divisive comments have even
extended to those who are not white. There is a current trend in the U.S.
called “Alt Right”, which is a code that really means white supremacy. Many hate groups and white supremacy groups have endorsed Mr. Trump. Trump’s slogan was “Make America Great Again.” To many, that
was a desire to set the country decades backwards in race relations and civil
rights.
The troubling truth keeps mounting with
Mr. Trump. His record with women is abysmal. He wants to appoint a Supreme
Court judge who will overturn Roe vs. Wade, a U.S. court case that allows women
to do as they chose with their own bodies when it comes to reproductive
decisions. Trump also said that women that have abortions should be criminally
punished. He sees women as sexual objects that exist for his pleasure, to with
as he chooses.
The following statements are quotes from
Mr. Trump, which reflect his views about women….
“You
have to treat them like shit”-1992
“If Ivanka weren’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be
dating her.”-2006
"You could see there was blood coming out
of her eyes…blood coming out of her…..wherever."-referring to Megyn Kelly,
reporter on Fox News
“I moved on her, and I failed. I’ll admit it…I
did try and fuck her…I moved on her like a bitch, but I couldn’t get there…when
you’re a star, they let you do it…You can do anything…Grab them by the pussy…..”-
2005
In addition to his
comments about sexually assaulting women, there are ten women now accusing him
of sexual assault. One woman reports she was raped by Donald Trump at age
twelve.
Beyond these lawsuits, there is a current
investigation regarding Trump University. Students paid money to attend classes
online on how to succeed in real estate. However, reports are that students got
nothing in return for their money. Some students paid over $40,000 and got
absolutely nothing in return.
*************************************************************************************
I cuddled up on the couch last night,
eager and excited to learn the results of the election. However, the more the
newscasts continued their coverage, it was becoming abundantly clear that
Hillary Clinton would have a lot of ground to cover if she was going to win the
Presidency. Eventually the hour got exceedingly late. I knew that the election
was on its course and that there would be an outcome, whether I was awake for
it or not. I went to bed praying to God for a Hillary Clinton Presidency.
I awoke this morning and read the news on
my cellphone. Donald Trump won. “President Trump.” Reading those words almost
made me physically sick.
It is a dark day in the history of the
United States. History was made, yet not in the way a majority of Americans
wanted it to. How could it have gone so wrong? Why didn’t
Hillary win the Presidency?
In reality, Hillary Clinton won the Popular Vote. Americans went to the polls and voted for her, and she won the majority. However, in the U.S., we do not vote for the President. We have an Electoral College which casts our vote for the Presidency. Each state has a number of electors. The electors read the results of votes from their state, and decide how to cast their vote. The first candidate to reach 270 electoral votes wins. Thus Clinton won the popular vote, and Trump won the electoral vote.
This happened back in the year 2000, when Al Gore was the Democratic candidate for the Presidency. He won the popular vote. However, George Bush won the Electoral vote. Therefore, Bush was President. After last night's results, many are questioning the need for the Electoral College. I am one of those people.
As to why Hillary Clinton lost the Electoral Vote, it was reported that she lost many African-American and Latino
voters. In reality, Hillary Clinton won the Popular Vote. Americans went to the polls and voted for her, and she won the majority. However, in the U.S., we do not vote for the President. We have an Electoral College which casts our vote for the Presidency. Each state has a number of electors. The electors read the results of votes from their state, and decide how to cast their vote. The first candidate to reach 270 electoral votes wins. Thus Clinton won the popular vote, and Trump won the electoral vote.
This happened back in the year 2000, when Al Gore was the Democratic candidate for the Presidency. He won the popular vote. However, George Bush won the Electoral vote. Therefore, Bush was President. After last night's results, many are questioning the need for the Electoral College. I am one of those people.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/09/hillary-clinton-failed-to-win-over-black-hispanic-and-female-vot/
Hillary Clinton also failed to capture
the millennial voters, Americans aged 18-35. They backed another candidate earlier in the election process,
Bernie Sanders. She never got the support that Bernie Sanders had.
Another reason Clinton lost the Presidency is apathy. Let me give you an example. A few days before this election, a friend
of mine said that she was not going to vote. I immediately asked her why she
decided on this course of action, or inaction, as it turned out. She replied, “I
don’t like either candidate. I don’t want to be responsible for either of them
getting the Presidency.” While I didn’t like or agree with her point of view, I
respected her decision. Yet I knew she was not alone in her thinking. There was
so much hatred in this election, so much anger, such incivility, that many in
the country became apathetic.
There is another factor in this election
as to why Hillary Clinton did not win the Presidency. It is a factor perhaps larger than the other three factors combined. It has nothing to do with
Clinton as a candidate. It has to do with misogyny and sexism. Many women feel that men in the United States are not ready to have a female President. There are many
men in the U.S. that would vote for a man rather than a woman. Many would
rather vote for a male candidate, no matter their views, no matter their stance
on the issues, no matter the hate they spew into the world.
One of the Tweets on Twitter I took away from last
evening was written by Patton Oswald. He had this to say…..
"What I've learned so far tonight: America is way more sexist than it is racist. And it's pretty fucking racist."
**********************************************************************************
This is a hard day. It was hard for me to
write this piece, to even write his name. For weeks I have not referred to
Trump by his name. The phrase “President Trump” almost makes me physically
sick.
Many in my workplace today are close to
tears. Several of us woke up this morning, heard the news, and chose a black
colored outfit to wear, the traditional color of mourning. We are in mourning for the
country. We are in mourning that Hillary Clinton did not win the Presidency. We
are in mourning that those who truly supported her did not come out and cast
their vote. We are saddened, and we are hurt. And we are not alone.
http://m.motherjones.com/politics/2016/11/election-hate-trump-president-racism
If you are a woman in the U.S., you lost
last night. Mr. Trump will not stand up for you or your reproductive rights. Likewise, if you are a member of the LGBT community, you lost last night. Mr. Trump will try to overturn marriage equality. If
you are a person of color, you lost last night. Mr. Trump has not disavowed the hate groups that support him. If you are an immigrant, you
lost last night. Mr. Trump wants to deport 12 million immigrants his first day in office. If you are white, male, and racist, congratulations. You won
last night.
America, I hope you’re awake now. A great deal of hatred is headed
our way.
I am dreading the next four years. I
joked that I will begin watching the nightly news in England to avoid news of
the Trump Presidency. But I cannot do that. I cannot ignore what is going on in
my own country. We all need to stay informed and remain enlightened. We cannot
stop fighting for the issues and causes we believe in.
I eagerly await the year 2020, the next
Presidential election in the United States. 2020 is a pivotal year. It marks
the 100 year anniversary that women were given the right to vote in the U.S.
Perhaps that will be the year that a woman finally shatters the glass ceiling
of the Presidency.
To Hillary Clinton, thank you for your
candidacy. Thank you for bringing us to a historic milestone in this country.
To the women of the United States, we are
grossly underrepresented in the governing bodies of our country. If you have
the desire, the time, the inclination, I would urge you to volunteer in your
local political process. Consider running for office. We cannot be a part of
the decision making that happens in this country without having a place at the
table.
Stay strong America. The storm will pass.
These dark skies will soon brighten. The sun will shine again. We will see a
female President. It will happen. Believe it.
© Esperanza Habla All Rights Reserved
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