Exhaustion. I know that you feel it and I certainly feel it too, but we cannot let it stop us from moving forward. We cannot stop fighting for what is right and fair and equal.
After the despicable performance of the man who calls himself President last night, as he metaphorically stomped around the stage, threw temper tantrums, cut off and talked over both the Democratic candidate and the moderator, and tellingly put the White Supremacists on standby for election day, he showed himself to be unfit. We already knew that he was. His performance as President, so far, has been just that – theatre. He has no demonstrable qualities that would make him a good leader and his lack of decorum and distaste for rules of order seal the fact that he is not someone we can afford to keep in that office going forward.
He should have never been elected. After the tapes came out proving he is a misogynistic piece of shit, he should have lost votes. But as we all know there are forces at work that prefer to ignore the White Supremacist and Misogynistic aspects of Trumps personality and go all in for the Patriarchal stuff. Holding on to the consolidation of White, cishet, affluent, dude power is all that mattered in 2016 and the display that we saw last night was the natural outcome of that rhetoric. You wanted a bully? You got a bully.
He should have been removed from office after being impeached. But the Republican Senate majority is also a collection of White, cishet, affluent, dudes, who are grasping at the last straws of that power structure.
He should not be re-elected. But this is where YOU come in. You who are exhausted and turned off by the display of machismo and general lack of respect for rules that came across last night. You who are angry that the person who calls himself President of the United States, rather than denouncing White Supremacy in our country, put the White Supremacists on standby for election day and beyond. I mean, this is not a surprise to any of us who have been paying attention to the history of the American Republic, but it should be a wake up call for everyone else. So, you who know that keeping this horrible, disgusting, human in power for another four years will not be good for the country and, in fact, will be the demise of democracy as we know it (no hyperbole there, only truth) need to vote.
Now I realize that some of you are too tired to even THINK about this stuff, but you have to keep engaging and moving forward. Last night’s display of disgusting behaviour behooves each and every one of us to stand up and say “WE AREN’T GOING TO TAKE THIS SHIT ANYMORE – THIS GUY HAS GOT TO GO”. And yes, I realize we are trading one White, cishet, affluent, dude for another White, cishet, affluent, dude, to be put in power, but we need to get rid of the first one and then we can move forward with the plans.
And what, you might ask, are these plans? Well – I’m glad you are inquiring of that. The plan is to unseat the tyrant and then move forward with the actual agenda of ALL the people in our society. Move forward with police reform. Move forward with immigration reform that gives all people the chance to become citizens and removes the cages and walls from the border. Move forward with healthcare for all. Move forward with the eradication of a virus that is killing 750-1000 people per day. Move forward with social justice intervention that makes change at a structural level. Move forward with the reinstatement of laws to protect the climate and make a future where we actually still have a planet to live on. Move forward with the restructuring of America into a nation that is truly meant for all of us, not just the White, cishet, affluent, dudes. Move forward.
It will take all of us, after the election, to continue working to hold Biden and Harris accountable to our needs as a nation. It will take us working toward social justice and equality on a daily basis and never stopping because this is the long game. We need to hold our Senators and Representatives accountable. Hold our local officials accountable. Hold their feet to the fire on issues that are important to us and make this system work in the way it should. For the people, by the people.
So, although that debate was a despicable display of greed, power, and White Supremacist Patriarchal values on the part of the sitting President, let it be a fire under you to do what you can to make this place better. Don’t let it determine your inaction. We don’t want to see a repeat of 2016. Trumps strategy is to exhaust the American people so much that they just don’t vote. Don’t let him get in your head. Bullies can’t bully if we don’t play into their games. We are stronger than his rhetoric. We can make this country a place we are all welcome and all equal. It just takes work. Are you ready to do the work? I hope so. Let’s go!