…and to the entirety of America, really. I woke up today and felt crushed by the news that Donald Trump will be the new President of the United States. I’m terrified for the next four years of policies destabilising women’s rights, human rights, environmental rights. I’m already bracing for more disgusting rhetoric, more scandalous headlines, filled with words I grew up fearful of saying. And really, I’m scared of its lasting effects that go further than four years, that reach further than the States’ own borders.
I only just got back from New York, and I can’t explain how much I fell in love with the city. That buzz! That same buzz I felt as a teenager visiting London for the first time. Stepping out onto 5th Ave. and being swallowed up by the crowds of stylish businesspeople, stereotypical tourists, and city delinquents, all in one. Padding down the street to get a coffee, to stroll in Central Park, to find myself somewhere completely new, and yet all-too-familiar. When you’re there, you realise just how much of New York you already know – from TV, from films, from music, from news.
I left wanting to go back, but now, I’m not sure. In fact, I was always nervous about my first visit to the U.S. My father told stories of him being interrogated by TSA Agents, being held for hours at airports, simply for his Iraqi nationality. The killing of George Floyd, and the persistent assaults launched by American right-wing politicians, intensified that fear. But I passed through security at JFK Airport just fine. I was welcomed into New York like any other visitor; with complete indifference, so long as I kept out of everyone’s way.
Today threw me back to the feelings I had in 2016, when Donald Trump was elected for the first time. In fact, it hits even closer to home, reminding me of the shell-shock I felt learning of Brexit passing. At the time, I was working in a small agency in London, and I walked to work with the same sadness in my heart that I had now. Our entire team sat quietly when we got in; all shocked. Now, working for myself, I feel like a tiny ice berg floating in a digital echo chamber. How did this happen?
If anything, this is an opportunity to learn. To recognise that as humans, we are wired to be emotional first, rational second. The Republicans are so very good at appealing to human instinct, to the self, to the individual. Trump is an incredible speaker, even if what he says is offensive and often incomprehensible. And I truly believe that most voters did not read each party’s policies; they simply aligned with media that struck closest to their thoughts and fears. This is a moment to recognise the deep sexism, racism, and xenophobia, that so many people hold. And the ease at which media can sway us all. The same goes for the U.K., really. Brexit happened for a reason. And sadly, that reason is quite simply the fear of the unknown; the fear of change.
How do we be hopeful? We have to be thankful for democracy, for the opportunity to still have opposition in the House, in the Senate. That there are large communities in support of progress. That there will be continued efforts for social justice and climate justice. But I do mourn the ease at which this progress could have been made if Kamala Harris was elected President.
