Donald Trump demonizes Muslims.
Donald Trump demonizes Latinos.
Donald Trump demonizes rape victims.
Donald Trump demonizes Hillary Clinton.
Donald Trump demonizes immigrants.
Donald Trump demonizes scientists.
Donald Trump demonizes professional athletes who protest institutionalized racism.
Donald Trump demonizes CNN, NBC, MSNBC, the Washington Post, the New York Times and most of the American Mainstream Media.
I’ve had face-to-face conversations with people about Trump’s hate-filled rallies, hate-filled tweets and hate-filled interviews, and I’ve been told that I worry too much. I’ve been told that Trump will be out of the White House in 2021 and the hatred, ignorance and cruelty will be over.
It will be over?
I’m sorry, but the hatred, ignorance and cruelty didn’t begin with Trump. Trump is like a fever caused by sepsis. He’s a symptom of a much greater problem.
When Trump holds his hate-filled rallies in Biloxi, Tupelo, Mobile, Baton Rouge, Estero or Pensacola, look at the people in crowds. There are boisterous crowds of chanting, cheering fanatics, emphatically cheering Trump on as he attacks Hillary Clinton, Christine Blasey Ford, Colin Kaepernick, CNN, immigrants, climate scientists and the like.
These people LOVE IT when Trump makes blatantly racists statements. They LOVE IT when Trump defends rapists and attacks rape victims. They LOVE IT when Trump attacks immigrants. They LOVE IT when Trump accuses all Latinos of being criminals.
And when Trump is out of the White House, is he taking all these hateful, ignorant people with him? Will they perhaps go to Moscow and work at a right-wing theme park?
No, these boisterous, racist, misogynistic, xenophobic people will still be here. They’ll still be reveling in their hatred of immigrants, African-Americans, LBGT people, civil-rights activists, Latinos, Jews, Muslims, investigative journalists and rape victims who dare to speak out against the men who raped them.
Okay, I will admit that Trump incited these people. He’s given them a national leader to rally behind. He’s validated their irrational hatreds, encouraged them and amplified them, but HE DID NOT CREATE THEM.
America has had a serious problem with racism from the very beginning. Racism was largely how white men justified enslaving the black man and engaging in mass-murder of the red man. And while we eventually got around to outlawing slavery and we eventually stopped slaughtering the many Native American tribes that lived on this continent, the racism remains.
In point of fact, America seems to be one of the most racist nations on the planet. Millions of my fellow American seem to have irrational fears and hatreds of anyone who is the slightest bit different. And this all began long before Trump got into the White House.
I’ve lived my entire life in the U.S.A., I’m over 50-years old and in my lifetime, I’ve seen religious leaders in this country preach hatred against gays, lesbians, Wiccans, Hindus, Jews, Muslims, Native Americans, Hispanics, African-Americans, civil-rights leaders and public-school teachers.
To reiterate, some of my fellow Americans spend their entire lives going to church and being told by their preacher to hate millions of their fellow Americans. They are told that God hates gays, lesbians, Muslims, Hindus and educators who dare to teach evolution.
Steven Anderson of the Faithful World Baptist Church has called for the execution of all gay people in America. Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association tells his followers that Muslims are “parasites who must convert or die”. He calls homosexuals “homofascists” and calls for homosexuality to be outlawed.
Steven Anderson and Bryan Fischer are just two examples of the sort of people I’m talking about.
America has plenty of religious leaders who preach hatred against “heretics” and “abominations” that don’t mesh with their narrow-minded religious doctrine. America has an army of preachers who have blamed the Holocaust on gays, who have blamed the 9/11 terrorist attacks on feminists, gays, lesbians and civil rights groups, and warned that giving gays and lesbians the same legal rights as their heterosexual counterparts could lead to hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, and terrorist bombings.
And when Donald Trump is gone from the White House, these people will still be out there, preaching ignorance and hatred to millions of my fellow Americans.
Sure, Trump’s hate-filled rallies get more publicity than those thrown by Roger Jimenez, Kevin Swanson, George Grant, Scott Lively or Steven Anderson, however, these people have followers. And they spread hatred, promote ignorance and incite violence. These people aren’t as well known as Trump, however, they’re toxic and they’re poisoning America in much the same way that Trump is poisoning America.
In addition to toxic religious leaders, America also has media leaders on cable, the Internet and on radio stations who promote fear, ignorance and hatred. Fox “news” Channel is probably #1 when it comes to spreading fear, ignorance, mistrust and right-wing talking points, however, they’re hardly alone. Alex Jones is a radio-show host with millions of followers. He’s spread conspiracy theories that have caused survivors of school shootings to be harassed, stalked and threatened.
So, NO, it will not be over when Trump is out of office. America is infected with millions of ignorant, uneducated, racist, xenophobic, homophobic bullies, and they will still be here long after Donald Trump is gone.
With Trump gone, they will no longer have a national leader in the White House to rally around, but they’ll still be here, and they’ll still be a threat. They’ll be out there, harassing, stalking, threatening, assaulting and even killing people that don’t fit in with their narrow-minded views.
Getting rid of Trump may be the easy task compared to what comes next. What exactly are we supposed to do with the millions of Americans who share Trump’s racism, Trump’s belligerence, Trump’s irrational hatreds, Trump’s ignorance and Trump’s intellectual-laziness?
