The time of “we just don’t talk politics” is over.
It has been over for me for years and I’m bewildered as to why it isn’t the case for everyone. It was shocking that more people didn’t stand up when then-candidate Donald Trump called people from Mexico “rapists” or when he, as president, said some of the white supremacists marching in Charlottesville were “very fine people” or when he implemented his cruel deportation policies focused on people of color under the guise of “safety” while bringing terror to our streets.
After recently sharing a video of President Barack and First Lady Michele Obama as apes, he seems to have reached a new low. In truth, however, it’s the same low. Instead of using dog whistles, he is now blatantly and proudly expressing his deep and vile racism.
This country has a racist past, one that we should study and learn from. But we also have a racist present that we all should be striving to eliminate.
As Americans, and as human beings, it is well past time to speak up, talk politics, stand up, protest, vote, call out this blatant racism at every opportunity. Simply “not talking politics” is a privilege. Silence is complicity.
Charlotte Maloney, Millcreek