How Did This Happen?

Normally I am not usually interested in politics, yet in the current state of our union, I cannot just sit by and say nothing. This past Tuesday, Donald Trump accumulated enough votes in the electoral college to become the first person without a day of experience to be the President of the United States. The morning after election day the number one question on everyone's mind was "how did this happen?" I could do nothing more than freeze in my stance, jaw and tears dropping concurrently.

People around the world have had similar reactions, afraid of what is to become of our nation as well as their own. To have a man like that in a position of power to this extent makes most people get a heavy feeling in their gut. The hate fueled by this person is that of an era we all were certain was behind us. The hate that his selection has welcomed has made people of any color and compassion worry for the future of ourselves and our loved ones. He is allowing and even encouraging the racist actions of his supporters that are not directed at one group or another, but ALL people of color or diversion.

I am a mother of an interracial family. My three daughters and son (who was born with Down Syndrome)are Jamaican, Irish, and Italian, my step daughter is black and Puerto Rican. I also happen to have dread locks and live in an urban neighborhood in Texas. In the current state of our union, I fear for the safety of my family as well as the others who live in similar situations. I know that things are only going to get worse once this man gets sworn into office, which is very evident by the people he is choosing to have around him. If you have any doubts of this just look at who will be the Attorney General and the Chief of Staff, we as a nation will be subjected to the "stop and frisk"type scenarios of Giuliani era New York.

How will I explain to my children that the President is making it okay for them to be called a n***er and be told to "go back to their country" when BOTH of their parents, and their parents parents WERE born here? I have so many questions yet not enough answers, as do most of the people in this country. One question that could easily be turned into action is why he hasn't come out to publicly denounce this behavior from his supporters? What will it take for him to publicly denounce the hate that his supporters are spewing?

It is more important than ever to impress love onto ANYONE you come in contact with. I know as well as anyone that this is much easier said than done but we have others who will be looking to us for the guidance to get through these difficult and very volatile times. Our children will look to us for the answers to those questions when faced with ignorance and hate. It would be very simple to answer with hate but that will get us nowhere except back to the L.A. riots of the early 90's but on a national level. This election has affected our nation on every level, even so far as to draw divisions between family members and could easily incite a new civil war.

Donald Trump is not a person who should be in office. He was not chosen by the people, that would be the Popular Vote which actually went to his opponent. This man is not only a disgrace to himself but to the American people. I read somewhere that about 47% of registered voters chose NOT to vote, possibly being too comfortable with a Hillary victory or a Trump loss. This is most likely the number 1 reason that he was able to secure the right states to accumulate the electoral votes. I respect the #NotMyPresident movement, if only the vote could have been THIS impassioned and motivated I would not even be discussing this.

I pray for our nation.