EDITORIAL: A president for all Americans

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EDITORIAL: A president for all Americans

In the early hours of last Wednesday morning, President-elect Donald Trump stood on a stage in New York lined with American flags and thanked the supporters of what he deemed “an incredible and great movement. . . comprised of Americans from all races, religions, backgrounds, and beliefs. . . “ He then pledged to be a “president for all Americans.” Now, more than ever, we find ourselves in a world where words matter. So when Mr. Trump promises to extend beyond his duty of being a president of all Americans to one for all of us, it is important to understand what that requires of him.

Here’s the short list:

AN ALLY TO THE LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY

While the nation has come a long way in accepting and promoting the rights of the LGBTQ+ community (as well as our own campus, see page 12 for our coverage on the expansion of gender-inclusive bathrooms), there still remains a lot of work to do before everyone can feel accepted in this country, regardless of their sexuality. In the wake of tragedies like the mass murder in Orlando last June, a president for this community must approach these issues with open-mindedness and tolerance.

A CHAMPION OF WOMEN

Mr. Trump has inherited the responsibility for not only the 42 percent of women who did vote for him, but the 58 percent who did not, according to exit polls. While Mr. Trump’s presidency extinguishes the possibility of shattering the highest glass ceiling, he still has the opportunity to champion the rights of more than half of his constituency in the coming years. Women have a right to ownership over their body. Women have a right to have a family and a career. Women have a right to see themselves reflected in their country’s positions of power. Mr. Trump has a duty to preserve these rights and expand upon them.

AN ADVOCATE FOR THE OPPRESSED

All lives do matter, but all lives won’t matter in this country until black lives matter. We can no longer ignore the fact that black lives do not matter. With every unjustified death, we, as a nation, instill greater fear into a community that has already suffered at the hands of institutionalized racism and oppression. Our history of racial unity has been a bleak one, but with a new administration in the midst of this turbulent time, Mr. Trump has the opportunity to heal the wounds of a broken community and make people of color feel safe.

A DEFENDER OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTIES

Two weeks ago we published a piece entitled “Race on Campus,” in which we reported on a black female Muslim student who feels as though she must compensate for these fundamental aspects of her character and sense of self. We can not deny the pervasiveness of Islamophobia, even on our own campus. A president for this student and for all those who reflect her insecurities in a country that has done so much to blame those who look and worship like her must correct the rhetoric that has fed this intolerance.

More than attending to any of these items, a president for all Americans is one that must be brave. Mr. Trump will soon have command of the world’s largest military force and access to nuclear launch codes, none of which will help him against the largest threat we face today. Our enemy is an insidious one who has slithered into our hearts and minds. Born of fear, it threatens our very humanity. This threat is hate, and to be a president for all of us, Mr. Trump must dismantle it at all costs.