In retrospect, I wish I had saved the Shakespeare quote and used it for this
post. It would have been just as fitting.
I cannot describe the dread I felt during the middle of my workday when I
looked down at the words written in the Buzzfeed notification my phone had pinged
at me. My first thought was, “There’s no way. No one in their right mind…” But it was true. A group of Trump supporters were essentially breaking into the U.S. Capitol to protest the democratic process that was taking place.
Just to provide clarity, the definition of democracy as stated by the Merriam-Webster
dictionary is as follows: “1a. government by the people; 1b. a government in
which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly
or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically
held free elections.” To put it simply, we (the citizens of this country) elect
the people who represent us. We vote, and whichever candidate gets more votes
wins that election fair and square. Fair. And. Square.
Sometimes a candidate that I did not vote for or support will win. Sometimes
a candidate I did support and vote for will win. Either way, the results are
fair, because the winner is the one who received the most support. I will
respectfully and good-naturedly accept that result and move on, while still
supporting and upholding the beliefs and morals that I hold true.
Because of this sentiment, I could not wrap my head around the reasoning for
the actions of the so-called “patriotic” protestors who infiltrated the United
States Capitol this afternoon. Yes, I am aware that the current commander in
chief of this country was sowing seeds of distrust and opposition in his
supporters regarding the validity of the election process, so I suppose the
events of today are not terribly surprising. But I had thought the American
people, the citizens of this country, of the United States, were better
than this. Instead, what occurred at the location of the Legislative Branch was
“an attack on America”, and U.S. Representatives were “instructed to lie down
on the floor and put on [their] gas masks” (quoted from Dan Kildee's Twitter page) while the House Chambers were bombarded
by protestors.
Meanwhile, the president sat in the oval office and watched it all unfold,
tweeting, “I am asking for everyone at the U.S. Capitol to remain peaceful. No
violence! Remember, WE are the Party of Law & Order – respect the Law and
our great men and women in Blue. Thank you!” It wasn’t until hours later, after
one woman suffered a gunshot wound, many of his supporters vandalized the
capitol, and countless congresspeople, as well as President Elect Joe Biden, called
for Trump to call off the protestors that he finally posted another tweet,
saying:
“These are the things and events that happen when a
sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously
stripped away from great patriots who have badly and unfairly treated for so
long. Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!”
He also made a video from the White House, which included the following message:
“You have to go home now. We have to have peace. We
have to have law and order. We don’t want anyone hurt. We love you. You’re very
special and I know how you feel.”
This message is problematic in countless ways. Firstly, he did not get a “landslide
majority” of the votes stripped away from him. He simply lost. Secondly, how
exactly have his “great patriots” been treated badly and unfairly? Please do
explain, because I do not understand. Did they get pinned to the ground while a
police officer kneeled on the back of their neck for 8 minutes? Did they get
shot in the chest while reaching for their driver’s license? Did they get
murdered in their own home in the dead of night? No? Didn’t think so.
Thirdly, these very much are not “the things and events that happen”
because of the results of an election. How DARE you tell vandals and terrorists
to go home with love and in peace? How DARE you normalize this behavior of hate
and violence. You are a spoiled little boy in a grown man’s body throwing a
temper tantrum because you lost the game after cheating for so long. Grow up.
And to people like this woman (whose identity will remain anonymous), who say, “The people are angry. Nobody’s
listening to us, Republicans or Democrats. We’re Trumpers.” Fine. You don’t
have to like that your candidate lost. No one likes it when their candidate
loses. But you don’t see the rest of us flipping tables and throwing the chess
pieces all over the floor; we accept the loss with grace. The way in which you used
your voice so that people “listened to you” was through your vote; the other
team simply cheered louder.
This country’s political system is not something you can just physically and
harmfully rage against when things don’t go your way. It is an organized system
in which everyone’s opinion is considered. It may be flawed, but this unprecedented
attack on it is simply inappropriate and unnecessary. If you want change, start
a petition or create a bill and send it to congress. Act like an adult. Try
teaching your fearless leader a thing or two about what it means to be an
American.
