Elect Yourself to Power

1) Just as sure as the election of Barack Obama did not, to the surprise of some, erode hate, it is equally as certain that the Donald Trump presidency will not erode love. These forces will always be a part of the world. It’s a fact of life. Choose which vibes you let in, don’t let the outside world choose for you.

2) The surplus of outward racism that seems to be growing from random white folk is just another, more grand form of posery. The real racists were oppressors who held people in chains, figurative or literal, and prevented people from basic human rights with a mob mentality and bent justice system. Just as black people of today will never know how bad it was back then, these white people of today will never know what it means to be true racists as their ancestors were. And just like any other poser, be it a fake emo, gangster, biker, etc, instead of being feared, they should be mocked. And in doing so, these posers lose whatever imagined power they think they have.

3) Don’t lose sight of the real issues of racism. People who actually DO hold powers like those described above: such as the criminal justice system and many police forces throughout the country. Choose your battles. Instead of fighting with posers, focus on the bigger, much more pivotal battle where people are being killed, and even more people remain silent.

4) You don’t need to be ashamed to be American or even ashamed of America. That implies that every American made this decision. Nope. The majority of the states and over 59 million people did, who just happen to share this same man-conceived land called the United States. You have your own values apart from those people, and based on the popular vote, you are not alone. This is a time to unite, true, but it’s also a time to own your individuality and the values that come along with it, and then surround yourself with like-minded folks. You’ll live a much more peaceful life that way. There is a space bigger than any country within all of us. Group mentality and social constructs blinds us to this sometimes. Donald Trump, his supporters, and America itself pales in comparison to what we each have inside us. Now would be a good time to become the president of that space.

5) I sincerely hope Donald Trump shocks the world and is an excellent president. Not for myself, but for those who are in fear. And I hope that all the peace-loving immigrants and Hispanic families (among many others) do not have their entire world upended the way we all know is possible. I can’t imagine what I would have said today to my mostly-Hispanic student base that I had the privilege of teaching for three years. But they, and millions of others, are truly in my thoughts. I guess what I would say is that I, and 58,814,018 others tried; and in spite of the results yesterday, unlike Hillary,

We Are Not Defeated.