THE YOUTH SPEAK

"Tonight was food for my soul. I spent the evening with 4 teenage youth whose compassion and world views left me inspired. We laughed. We cried a little. We made jokes about Putin. We listened to George Harrison. We talked about our fears, especially for our marginalized friends in this country. We talked about our own struggles with bullying and depression. We sang.

My faith, philosophies, practice, and way of life tell me that no matter who you voted for, you too have worth and dignity and are deserving of love and respect. You are a Buddha to me. I'm not going to unfriend you nor stop trying to have a dialogue with you based on your beliefs, and I recognize there is grave danger in thinking that way.

I also recognize that rural, working class America has been, in large part, disenfranchised, and this election was a manifestation of that anger and a way of saying 'We still exist.' I know you, too, have had pain and economic despair, and while I think you have chosen absolutely the wrong leader who does not represent your best interests at all, this shows that we as a nation failed to listen. I hear you.

We truly live in two Americas now. I just wish there were some way for me to convey in my heart of hearts to those of you on the other side that the fear for their lives and personhood my friends are feeling is REAL. My black friends. My trans friends. My queer friends. My immigrant friends. My Muslim friends. My female friends who now know that what kind of domain they have over their bodies may rest in the hands of someone who admittedly views said bodies as objects. The persecution of these groups is nothing new, but we have a president elect who has endorsed this persecution, and so that fear and despair has been exacerbated. 8 trans youth have committed suicide since yesterday. If you still really don't think such oppression exists in supposedly the greatest country in the world, it does. It's real. So please try and take some time to understand that. I beg you.

I wish I had answers to such chaos. I could talk about peace and unity, but that's really just rhetoric. We can't have either of these until we put an end to such atrocities our siblings are experiencing. Let's make it so."

Signing off at 5:40 am.            

Cameron Young
Director of Lifespan Religious Education
Westside Unitarian Universalist Church
Fort Worth, TX

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I appreciate your interest in my perspective. 

I voted for Hillary, and admittedly, I was shocked and appalled that Trump won. As everyone knows, none of the polls predicted he could have won, and watching Florida and Pennsylvania swing Republican left me feeling pretty hopeless.

Policies aside, I believe that the U.S. President has much greater duties than the head of the executive branch and commander-in-chief. The president should be a role-model for children and reflect the values Americans hold most dear. Unfortunately, I feel Trump has fallen vastly short in this regard, and I fear for a generation that looks up to him. He blatantly lies, makes racist, misogynistic, homophobic remarks, and relies on petty insults and horrendously inappropriate language. Trump lacks the grace and respect for others that the U.S. President needs. Trump capitalizes on the fears of voters and the American people. Trump wants to build a border wall, a project that, in my opinion, is a step away (from) world peace and cooperation. To my greatest dismay, Trump denies global warming. Trump hopes to weaken the EPA and reverse the role Obama has played in green energy, which I find incredibly ignorant, irresponsible, and disgusting. One's respect for the Earth often indicates a degree of intelligence, and in this case, I think it highlights Trump's selfish, egotistical mindset.

I could continue, and I want to continue. However, the U.S. has made its decision. Trump is going to be president, and no amount of protesting is going to change that. The election IS over. A beautiful aspect of America is the peaceful transition of power, and the American people need to remember how lucky we are to be in a country where an election like this wouldn't result in a civil war.

At first, I found it hard to look at my friends who voted for Trump, but I realized how wrong it was to think differently of someone I respected for political reasons. I still love my friends who voted for him, and I feel guilty for doubting that. I think America needs to move past the election. 

Citizens need to remember that we are all fellow Americans. Those who think Trump will ruin their lives are exaggerating. The divisive nature of our country caused this awful election, and I hope that we learned our lesson to prevent another election like this. Trump-voter or not, we all need to keep our heads up and continue striving to make this world a better place for the next generation." ..Tanner

Like any proud grandmother, my eyes teared up as I swelled with pride for these two young men. Cameron is my oldest grandchild, and Tanner voted for the very first time this year. He is a senior in high school. When I wrote him that he was no longer the little boy I remember so well. (The one who hid from me in the library cupboard.) He responded, "I'll always be a kid at heart. I promise!"

I have highlighted many events in the lives of these two on this blog. They are among the finest in the nation of their generation. Their parents, my older son Craig, and daughter Carajean and her husband Branch, are to be congratulated upon raising such fine men. Our future will be secure in their hands one day. They are handling the election results better than a lot of us "elders".

Cameron first posted the above on his Facebook page following election night. I heard from a good friend who remembers him from his childhood days singing at our Unity Church, "I was incredibly impressed with what Cameron posted on Facebook. Wonderfully astute young man. Hope I'll be voting for HIM for president some day!"

We might  just do that, Pam.

Peace, Love, and Hope for our future.

Marilyn

Addendum:

I'm sorry to interrupt the flow if you were reading this, but I just received a powerful statement from my granddaughter, Hannah, who is Cameron's sister. Not old enough to vote yet, but look out, world, she's on her way!

"It is frightening and hurtful to me that a man who ran a campaign based on fear-mongering and the scapegoating of already marginalized people

could ever win the presidency. In these days following the election, I've had it shoved down my throat again and again that not all of the people who cast their votes for Trump were hateful bigots, and did it for 'purely economic reasons'. Forget that fact that no part of me agrees with his economic policies, but even voting for him because you want a few tax breaks is turning your backs on people who are facing a very real threat in the form of this man.

I can't help but feel that, on Tuesday, the system failed us. I am scared as a woman, as a sister to a biracial woman, and a friend to all communities. Women's diseases are a very real possibility in my family, and, because Planned Parenthood is basically doomed, I might one day be at a place where I can not afford, therefore not receive, the lifesaving tests that they offer. My close friend's family is covered by Obamacare, and as soon as it is repealed, she will no longer be able to afford her birth control. Already, we are seeing people of all minorities, be it gay or Latino, being accosted on the street, because the election of Trump told bigots that their hate is both okay and justified. We are facing a real possibility of a conservative Supreme Court, which will have the largest lasting effect. With all of this and more, it's hard not to feel that we, as a nation, are doomed.

But we will persevere. We will continue to march in protests, with signs proclaiming that, 'Love Trumps Hate', as is within our 1st Amendment rights (though Republicans seem to have glazed over this fact in their hurry to proclaim their 2nd Amendment right, but oh, well). And I feel blessed that the first election I will be able to vote in is the 2018 midterm elections, because we will get a Democratic majority in Congress, if I have to go out and walk every street in America myself, campaigning for the Democratic candidates. But people ages 18-44 voted overwhelmingly for Hillary. Statistically, if millennials had been the only ones voting, only about three states would have been red. So I have hope. I have real hope in the future for a kinder, safer, and more empathetic America for everyone who cares to come. And I hope to be working on the front lines of this change. On Tuesday, a glass ceiling was meant to be shattered, but I still have hope that someday soon it will. Either way, #ImWithHer, always."

The apple doesn't fall far from the tree in our family, does it? Proud Dad, Craig is with me I'm certain when I say "I'm with HER".

You go, girl.
Love,
Grandmama