Talk to Iris: The post-election ugly that remains
By Iris Krasnow
| Correspondent |
Nov 17, 2016 | 11:46 AM
Capital columnist Iris Krasnow. (File photo)
Donald Trump is the President-elect of the United States, our beloved country that has never felt more like the Divided States.
The campaign was ugly, and both sides were relieved it finally came to an end. Yet the ugly remains, in deeper, uglier acts and banter normalized in Trump rallies where slogans such as "Make America White Again" and "JEW-S-A" were battle cries.
Trump promises now he doesn't believe in this ugly. Yet many he attracted clearly did. This ugly is now a permanent stain, immortalized in news clips and social media posts and in seared psyches that will never forget.
One of my college students, a young African-American woman, said she felt like she was hit with a "double whammy — what was passive racism and misogyny are now outright racism and misogyny. Now it's OK to say anything to anybody."
I know that all Trump voters are not proponents of white nationalism, nor do you all hate women. I also know that you, too, are aware of how your choice has helped create an aftermath of outrage and malaise.
[Most read] Everyday archaeology uncovers broken bits of 19th-century Annapolis »
I know that you may have voted your wallet and that you were able to shrug off Trump's disgusting comments about how his power made him able to grab women's genitals. You may agree with this reaction from a female Trump voter following the release of the tape of Trump bragging in "locker room talk":
"Oh, that's just how men are," she said, then she laughed.
That's not how most men are in 2016. That's not who my four sons are growing up to be. All of our children, whether the most bigoted of Trumpsters like it or not, are coming of age in a culture that is increasingly color blind and without condemnation of sexuality or gender. We the people of all ages will fight hard to sustain an unbreakable foundation of tolerance and equality.
I wish we could snap our fingers and erase the news footage that aired before the election that led to the swastikas and N-words appearing on walls.
But we can't snap our fingers and make this go away. We rightly fear anger and confusion are here to stay as long as people in power try to stem human decency and rights. We cannot ignore the daily news of hijabs being ripped off women's heads and talk of a Muslim registry that sounds Hitleresque.
I do not hate Donald Trump. I hate the normalization of racism, sexism, anti-Semitism and white nationalism left behind.
I hate the prospect of an America shaped by Steve Bannon, the architect of Trump's campaign and his pick for Chief Strategist. Come on, Mr. President of the People. This is the racist who has run the "Alt-Right" (translation: "All White") website Breitbart News, compared Planned Parenthood's work to the Holocaust, and advised females who were experiencing social media bullying to log off and stop "screwing up the internet for men."
This is your wife and your daughter and your mother he is talking about.
Bannon's appointment and others in the swirl of white men who comprise Trump's scary inner circle make it more urgent for We The People — the majority of the voting population – to cling to the slogan raised from survivors of the Holocaust: "Never Again." We The People are taking to the streets with a force and momentum not seen since the 1970s.
We The People, who believed Hillary Clinton was the more qualified person to unite the states, cannot roll over. We will not forget the rhetoric responsible for the reality of a President Trump, who acts eerily like the tyrant plucked from his realty TV show.
[Most read] Two injured in Annapolis crash involving tractor-trailer »
We will keep pushing back and hollering if you and your posse try and unravel laws and policies that threaten the rights of women and minorities, our access to health care, the health of our planet, our future.
Donald Trump, you say you will give jobs to Middle America. I hope this is a promise you keep. But you've got a long way to keep your victory speech promise of uniting a country of many colors and religions seething from your hate-spewing campaign. Whatever you say now, your past words uttered in large crowds and in strange Tweets are indelible reminders of who you were before Nov. 8.
Man up to this truth: You now need to act presidential, and this includes coming clean about questionable business deals and being credible about stemming the bigotry you have fanned.
We are all watching. And remember — you can be fired.
Iris would love to hear your stories. Email her at iris@toad.net.
Everyday archaeology uncovers broken bits of 19th-century Annapolis