The election is over, and Donald Trump is now the president-elect of the United States. For months, we as a country speculated about the consequences of his election. Now it’s time to find out what will become of those speculations.
In particular, many Americans who opposed Trump said that they would leave the country if he won. Some were serious, others less so. For those who were merely joking, it would be not only pointless but also tactless to go on making such jokes.
Humor undeniably has a place in helping people make the best of bad situations, but not when it encourages people to abandon their situation altogether.
For those who were serious, there is an important distinction to be made regarding the conditions that make escape acceptable. The fact of the matter is that anyone who does not genuinely need to leave should resolve instead to stay and participate in the formation of our country’s future.
Of course the question now becomes: who can lay claim to that genuine need? Of those who were serious when they were preparing themselves to say goodbye to America, which people have reasonable justification to make good on their plans for departure?
It is no secret that there are certain demographics who now stand to risk more than others just by going about their daily lives. Prejudices of all kinds, whether they are being fought against or acted upon, are at the forefront of contemporary American culture.
We have not seen stories of Christians degraded for wearing crucifix necklaces, but we have seen Muslim women yelled at and told to remove their hijabs.
We have not seen white college students harassed in public on the grounds that the election has created new racial rules, but we have seen a black student at Baylor University shoved on her way to class by someone who thought that trying to make America great again meant there should be “no n------” allowed on the sidewalk.”
The Editorial Board recognizes if you feel threatened by those in whom Trump’s victory has brought out the worst, your fears for your own well-being and the well-being of those you love deserve to be seen as legitimate. If others are attempting to put you in danger because of something fundamental about you (race, religion or otherwise), you have every right to do what you think is necessary to protect yourself.
It is hard enough to feel unwelcome in your own country; you should not also have to feel unsafe.
However, if you are unlikely to experience hate as part of the cultural backlash that is surfacing in the wake of Trump’s election, you should re-evaluate any plans you have to leave.
Anyone who claims to be appalled by the prospect of increased discrimination needs to make productive use of their concern for social justice and stand by anyone who might need help. We should all be allies, not deserters.
