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An open letter to the American majority
Nov. 9th, 2016 10:13 amDear American Majority,
Congratulations.
I mean that. You showed up and voted and your voice was heard.
The thing about elections, especially one like this one is that they tend to strip away all of our preconceived notions, our fantasies, that sort of thing. It tends to show us what and who we really are. Not just to ourselves, but also to the rest of the world looking in. While the picture of America isn't exactly a great one, I, for one, am not ashamed of my actions yesterday. I performed my civic duty along with the rest of my community and then I prayed and continued to pray for what the outcome would tell us. The huge overflow of what I saw from first time voters was a happy moment that I will treasure. The absolute glee on their faces, the excitement, that’s how it should be. My more cynical side simply hopes it’s not the last time we see that.
This outcome has taught me a lot about who you are and what you think, American Majority. While parts of me are still reeling from the revelations of last night into this morning, it is good to know where I and the rest of my communities stand with you. I used to suspect that you didn’t actually care about us. Now I know that none of you will stand up for me or mine if something happens to us. Should it be that way? No.
But that’s the reality that I and my other friends, family, and communities are dealing with, so we’ll make it work for us. That's okay. You haven’t stopped us. We're used to having to take care of one another, so we'll just keep on keeping on. My generation in particular is used to this by now. Last night was hard, but we’ve been through hard before. We’re survivors after all. You made us that way.
You haven't gotten rid of us by the way. If anything, you've made most of us more determined to stay here and work that much harder to continue improving our country. Because at the end of the day, what truly matters isn't the person sitting at 1600 Pennsylvania, it’s the forty people all chipping in to make sure that their friend can eat and also pay rent. It’s the people who’ve opened up their houses and apartments to friends in need. It’s sharing meals, even if you barely have enough food for yourself. It’s the fact that right now, we’re all choking back the terror and the fear and resolving to double down on our kindness and our empathy and the values that make us who we are. We’re doubling down on love.
Because Love Wins.
Our values don’t include hate. We’re rejecting that. We’re rejecting the hate and the fearmongering.
Love Wins. Those of us lucky enough to be privileged in one way or the other are standing in the gap for those that don’t.
We’re going to #LetLoveWin. It starts now. It starts with me and you.
Love Wins.
This entry was originally posted at http://bethany-lauren.dreamwidth.org/470750.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
Congratulations.
I mean that. You showed up and voted and your voice was heard.
The thing about elections, especially one like this one is that they tend to strip away all of our preconceived notions, our fantasies, that sort of thing. It tends to show us what and who we really are. Not just to ourselves, but also to the rest of the world looking in. While the picture of America isn't exactly a great one, I, for one, am not ashamed of my actions yesterday. I performed my civic duty along with the rest of my community and then I prayed and continued to pray for what the outcome would tell us. The huge overflow of what I saw from first time voters was a happy moment that I will treasure. The absolute glee on their faces, the excitement, that’s how it should be. My more cynical side simply hopes it’s not the last time we see that.
This outcome has taught me a lot about who you are and what you think, American Majority. While parts of me are still reeling from the revelations of last night into this morning, it is good to know where I and the rest of my communities stand with you. I used to suspect that you didn’t actually care about us. Now I know that none of you will stand up for me or mine if something happens to us. Should it be that way? No.
But that’s the reality that I and my other friends, family, and communities are dealing with, so we’ll make it work for us. That's okay. You haven’t stopped us. We're used to having to take care of one another, so we'll just keep on keeping on. My generation in particular is used to this by now. Last night was hard, but we’ve been through hard before. We’re survivors after all. You made us that way.
You haven't gotten rid of us by the way. If anything, you've made most of us more determined to stay here and work that much harder to continue improving our country. Because at the end of the day, what truly matters isn't the person sitting at 1600 Pennsylvania, it’s the forty people all chipping in to make sure that their friend can eat and also pay rent. It’s the people who’ve opened up their houses and apartments to friends in need. It’s sharing meals, even if you barely have enough food for yourself. It’s the fact that right now, we’re all choking back the terror and the fear and resolving to double down on our kindness and our empathy and the values that make us who we are. We’re doubling down on love.
Because Love Wins.
Our values don’t include hate. We’re rejecting that. We’re rejecting the hate and the fearmongering.
Love Wins. Those of us lucky enough to be privileged in one way or the other are standing in the gap for those that don’t.
We’re going to #LetLoveWin. It starts now. It starts with me and you.
Love Wins.
This entry was originally posted at http://bethany-lauren.dreamwidth.org/470750.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
