The recent state of politics in the United States has highlighted the divisions among the people. Led by the President, these divisions focus on inequality and justice for some. Since the swearing in, we have seen travel bans on mostly Middle Eastern countries, proposals and prototypes for a larger wall between the United States and one of its two bordering countries, and the unprofessional and unkind responses to the aftermath of hurricanes.
Though the state of our nation might seem to be in a downward spiral, there is much opposition to hateful and divisive laws and politics. With states fighting for the rights of the people, voters electing diverse candidates to office, and people banding together in their own communities to unite through diversification rather than to default to division, there is no question that our country is moving towards a better future.
Election of Diverse Candidates
The recent elections in November represented perhaps the most hopeful signs for acceptance and forward movement as a country in the past several months. Several candidates made history, such as Danica Roem, the first transgender women elected to any State House, and Ravinder Bhalla, the first turbaned Sikh mayor of a major US city.
Several other elected candidates will represent the LGBT+ community in significant ways. Andrea Jenkins, an openly transgender woman, was elected to the Minneapolis City Council, and Jenny Durkan will be the first female mayor as well as the first openly lesbian mayor of Seattle. Tyler Titus became the first openly transgender person elected in Pennsylvania when he won a seat to the Erie School Board.
Despite huge setbacks and restrictions set in place for refugees, including heavy limitations on the number of those seeking asylum status allowed to enter the country and even travel bans on people from specific countries, a few refugees were elected into office. Willmot Collins, for example, was elected to be mayor of Helena, Montana, and Kathy Tran, a refugee from Vietnam, became the first Asian-American woman to be elected into the Virginia House of Delegates.
Other female candidates won in significant ways for feminism as well. Ashley Bennett was elected in place of John Carma, who joked that he was okay with the Women’s March so long as women were home in time to make dinner. Michelle Kaufusi became the Mayor of Provo, Utah, a heavily conservative city.
States Fight Back
Business Insider recently reported that Trump’s approval rating has “dropped dramatically in every state.” While Trump undoubtedly has a large number of supporters, many of his actions have left citizens unsatisfied and even angry. Certain states are fighting back by advocating for their people’s rights.
An example of this is attorney generals in democratic states like California, New York, and Washington will sue to defend the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).This occurred after Trump’s decision to end DACA, and “several states and immigrant advocacy groups vowed” to fight the decision, according to Reuters.
Likewise, the New York Times reports that in the time since Trump declared an impending withdrawal from the Paris Accord, 14 state governors “have vowed to continue upholding the agreement and press ahead with policies to fight global warming.”
These are just a few of the many ways states are standing up for what they believe is right. The balance of the democracy of our country is a fine balance between federal and state laws, just as it is a fine balance between protecting its people’s rights and protecting the people.
The People Band Together
Though social media is largely a place for unproductive arguments and headbutting, it can also provide a platform for people to share and discuss new ideas or values. As social media is growing and developing, its users are, too. According to Rutgers University, social media is changing public administration in many ways, including encouraging others to vote or take action and reposting content related to political or social issues.
A recent example of this is Cards Against Humanity Saves America. The card game company recently bought a plot of land on the Mexican border in order to protest and inhibit the building of Trump’s proposed wall. They have secured eminent domain lawyers to make the process to build Trump’s as time consuming and expensive as possible.
In an effort to do so, the company sold off portions of the land for $15 to the public, making it so that each individual who buys it would have to go to court if and when eminent domain is enacted. They sold out in one day.
This is just one example out of many of how people are coming together to fight for what they believe to be right. It is important to always look for positive — and humorous, if possible — ways to stand up for the rights of the people. Education is another great way to ensure that, by learning critical thinking skills and ways to break down and understand complex issues. Specializing in diplomacy or a related field can also enable people to take a stand for themselves, and maybe even turn a voter into a candidate.
Democrats, Republicans, liberals, conservatives, and everyone in between all need to learn how to challenge their own beliefs and make sure they truly believe in what they stand for. The greatness of a country is never achieved, it is always strived for. As the citizens of the United States change and progress, so must their country.
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