As we move closer to the beginning of November, I struggle more and more with the reality of the 2016 Presidential Election. Here we are, putting are fate in the hands of voters that the majority of said voters will only face the short-end of the consequences. It is the youth that will suffer the most by this election. It is the generations yet to come that will suffer most by this election. It is our generation that will be affected by this election.
Let’s look at our candidates, including the ones not quite in the spotlight:
- Hillary Clinton, Democratic Party
- Donald Trump, Republican Party
- Gary Johnson, Libertarian Party
- Jill Stein, Green Party – only on the ballot for 40 select states and D.C.
- Evan McMullin, Independent, only on the ballot for less than 20 select states
We’ve heard a bit about Gary Johnson and maybe Jill Stein, but we’ve heard a lot about Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. These are the people we are concerned with.
HILLARY CLINTON
This list includes Pros of electing Clinton but is not limited to
- Wants to eliminate the death penalty, but still believes it should be reserved for suspects of horrific mass killings
- Committed to building the Native American community back up
- Wants to eliminate college tuition for students of public state colleges – (hillaryclinton.com) “Under her plan, every student will have the opportunity to graduate from an in-state four-year public college or university without taking on any student debt. Families with incomes up to $125,000 will pay no tuition at in-state public colleges and universities, which covers more than 80 percent of families. The plan will be phased in over five years, but families earning $85,000 or less will immediately be able to attend an in-state college or university without paying any tuition."
- Doesn’t support guns in classrooms
- She has plans to tackle global warming
- Wants to continue with Health Care Reform (also called “Obamacare”) and expand it
- Wants to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule 1 drug to a Schedule 2 drug – this would take marijuana out of the same category as heroine and put it in the same category as a prescription drug
- Supports the push for legal and safe abortions
- Has experience as a politician
Cons
- She has been labeled as untrustworthy
- She has a baggage of scandals, some hers and some her husband’s
- Disliked by political opponents
Unclear
- Wants to move away from treating drug use as a crime and more as a health issues
- Wants to end tax subsidies for oil and gas, and use those funds for investments in clean energy
- Wants more support for teachers
- Wants to lift the Cuba embargo
DONALD TRUMP
Pros
- Believes the growth of charter schools is good for America
- Wants stronger security in the fight against immigrants
- Wants to rebuild the US military
Cons
- Believes women should be punished for getting abortions
- Sexually harasses women behind the defense of his social stature
- Encourages rape culture
- Supports racial profiling
- Is strongly for defunding Planned Parenthood
- Against granting citizenship to undocumented immigrants
- Wants to keep the Cuba embargo the way it is
- Doesn’t believe in climate change nor that humans have anything to do with it
- Supports the use of GMOs
- Supports the Keystone XL pipeline
However, moving away from the political stances of this conversation, I want to go in more detail about Donald Trump’s stance on women.
In a 2005 clip with Billy Bush, Trump stated that “when you’re a star, they let you do it” in regards to his nonconsensual groping and kissing of women. “Grab them by the pussy,” he said, “you can do anything.”
Whether or not this clip is over a decade old, it’s still concerning. As a female, I am disgusted by his comments as much as I am concerned about them. What I am most concerned about is the possibility of having this man—who bragged about him sexually assaulting women—as President of the United States and men attempting to defend him by simply calling it ‘locker room banter.’
There is a difference between talk about sex and talk about sexual assault. The bragging of sexually assaulting women is not synonymous with talking about sex. The difference in the two is consent. If it was not consensual, it is sexual harassment. It is rape culture. Rape culture should not have a place in locker room banter, and if it does, there needs to be a change.
I said it before and I will say it again. Donald Trump is not fit to run this country. Sure, he has a little to offer, but the cons outweigh the pros. I am not saying that makes Hillary the so much better than Trump in these regards, but think about it. And of course she isn’t your only other option. But you shouldn’t want Trump to be a role model for your children or your siblings or your peers or yourself for that matter. And the people attempting to normalize the severity of his brash comments are a part of the problem.
As an African American female, it’s hard not to feel concerned at this election.
Sources:
Presidency 2016
Hillary Clinton (D) – Positions and Statements on the Issues
Donald Trump (R) – Positions and Statements on the Issues
Trump recorded having extremely lewd conversation about women in 2005
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