It is agreed upon by many people around me that the country we live in is in a poor state of affairs. This will not be a huge political rant - the people that need to know my feelings on the subject of politics largely already know my feelings on the subject. As with everything, I try to remain open and critical of the information that comes my way. That said there are some things that concern me.
I participated in my first protest today. This was a peaceful protest conducted by my university's Social Justice Committee. The words "social justice" have taken on a negative connotation in my mind, so much as I love the people on the committee and their undying commitment to the betterment of humankind I still inwardly cringe at the title. Thanks, Tumblr.
It was a peace protest, not just a peaceful protest. Unlike many protests going on across the United States, our university wasn't demonstrating against president elect Trump. There were, in fact, Trump supporters present with Trump/Pence signs. Cool, there's a potential for a dialogue here.
Kind of. I mean, it was a protest, and people were there to chant slogans and not really engage in discussion.
Going in, there's one thing that I promised myself I would not do: I would not engage in chanting of any kind. Group voices are powerful, and being present and part of a mob is also powerful. But Groupthink can be very dangerous, and so I refuse to engage in it when I see it coming - even if the intentions are noble enough. When spoken to, I will raise my voice in defense of my beliefs. When no one will speak up, I will raise my voice in defense of my beliefs. But I will not chant them, and I certainly will not chant them with a group. (In case you're wondering, I stayed true to my promise).
I saw a great number of friends at the protest. Most of them were students, a couple of them were professors.
I should back up.
Back on my birthday, I decided that I would quietly begin my transition from identifying as a male to identifying as a female. This was late October - I suddenly had more personally riding on the election than previously. (Not to say that I wouldn't have been frustrated by the result had I not begun to transition, but I certainly wouldn't have had much in the way of irrational fear to buy into as a white male).
I began showing up to school dressed as a woman and wearing a wig (because my hair hasn't grown out to a point where I'm satisfied that it looks feminine enough for my own tastes) and I wear mastectomy prosthesis because I like the way I look with boobs. I put on makeup before I leave the apartment. This came as a bit of a shock to many of my school friends, who I had to refrain from directly coming out to for other reasons that are logical to those friends and I but do not otherwise concern anyone else. My transition has been, in this very short period of time, fairly smooth.
I go out dressed as a woman for much of my time these days. I'm pretty comfortable with it. Today, I protested as a woman. This was not some holistic experience that made me feel like a goddess. It was, however, an interesting experience as a trans woman. This was mostly because of the Trump supporters that were present. Without them, I rather suspect the whole protest might have felt a little dry and uninteresting. Just walking and chanting, walking and chanting.
None of the Trump supporters were openly hostile towards me, and if they noticed that I was trans then they didn't give any indication that it mattered to them. While that's great, I was still uncomfortable around them. I know a lot of Trump supporters, specifically family members, who don't buy into the whole racism or misogyny bit. They support much of Trump's economic platforms, or else just despised Hillary. They're not bad people and I continue to love them even though our opinions on the matter differ. So why should these student Trump supporters make me uncomfortable?
The first time they made me especially uncomfortable was when the front of the crowd began to chant "Human rights matter," and the Trump supporters (somewhere around the middle where I was) began to chant "USA" over top of the folks in the front. If it wasn't their intent to usurp the message of "human rights matter" they surely failed. Sorry, but your patriotism does not outweigh human rights on a global scale.
But chanting "USA" just by itself was discomforting, as well. Later in the protest, the whole crowd chanted it as we walked down Lacey blvd. While I might have been inclined to chant things like "human rights matter," chanting the initials of my country speaks of mindless nationalism. While I don't think my country is the worst country in the world by a long shot, I am certainly very critical of it even when things are going my way.
To me, the biggest problem that the United States has is one associated with idolatry. I am choosing this very Abrahamic word because it suits our largely Abrahamic nation. We idolize the rich, and we build our society on the myth that it is possible for anyone to get rich. And Trump, among other things, spews forth the Horatio Alger myth as his own path to success. While I think a great number of people had a great number of reasons for voting for Trump, I think the reason why Trump is most trusted is because people believe he can be trusted with money.
I'm not going to make the argument that he cannot be trusted with money. I'm not writing this to attack Trump. I just want to point out that it doesn't take much digging to find something that's terribly wrong with this country, something that has been consistently demonstrably untrue for two hundred and forty years of American history. And it is something that has been protested against for almost the entirety of the twentieth century.
I served in the US Army for 8 years. I am proud of my service, and I believe I have done my civic duty to this country. I asked not what my country could do for me, and instead asked what I could do for it. That's what many young men are wont to do in a wartime.
But I am ashamed of what extremists have been doing in the name of patriotism. Especially this past year. Especially this last week. And just like my feelings about the Confederate Flag and the swastika, the chant "USA" has become synonymous with hate speech in my mind. It doesn't represent proud patriotism, crowned good with brotherhood. It represents angry, frustrated people trying to yell their way to greatness. The news media tells us, "we have never been more divided in American history."
I became curious, as I watched these young students march and chant, how many of them actually participated in the elections? Before we began, I heard one young fellow admit that he didn't vote. It wouldn't have mattered much if he had in Washington, which voted Hillary anyway.
But what I find curious are two things: first, if the majority of protesters did vote, which I think it seems safe to assume they did, what does that say for the stereotype of voters in their age ranges? Most of them seemed to be typical college students, early twenties. Not your traditional voters. Second, if they didn't vote, why would they choose to enter the political process now, outside of the bureaucracy that allows the system to change?
I don't have answers to these questions. I hope someone with more journalistic wherewithal is out there doing the research right now. I'd be fascinated to interpret the data.
Something else I reflected on while I was walking up the street was how grateful I was to be privileged enough to be part of a protest where I wasn't getting attacked by dogs, or tear gassed, or pepper sprayed, or arrested. There are still some very big protests in this country - vital ones that aren't related to president elect Trump at all - where that kind of thing is still happening.
I think, though, those are the most effective kinds of protests. You don't have to be violent to protest, but I think in order for the protest to work there must be some kind of violence perpetrated. Someone must become the villain in order for the problem to be recognized. And the more villainous the villain the more effective the protest. That's really sad, and honestly I hope I never have to be in a protest where I have to wonder if I'll ever see my children again.
But should it come to it, I know that I will be in that protest. I will link arms with my brothers and sisters for a united goal should the time come.
I think that's all for my stream of consciousness reflection on the protest I took part in today.
Live long and prosper.
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| This kind of thing - not the cartoon, but the content of it. |
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| You PC, bro? |
Kind of. I mean, it was a protest, and people were there to chant slogans and not really engage in discussion.
Going in, there's one thing that I promised myself I would not do: I would not engage in chanting of any kind. Group voices are powerful, and being present and part of a mob is also powerful. But Groupthink can be very dangerous, and so I refuse to engage in it when I see it coming - even if the intentions are noble enough. When spoken to, I will raise my voice in defense of my beliefs. When no one will speak up, I will raise my voice in defense of my beliefs. But I will not chant them, and I certainly will not chant them with a group. (In case you're wondering, I stayed true to my promise).
 |
| No good ever comes of this. |
I should back up.
Back on my birthday, I decided that I would quietly begin my transition from identifying as a male to identifying as a female. This was late October - I suddenly had more personally riding on the election than previously. (Not to say that I wouldn't have been frustrated by the result had I not begun to transition, but I certainly wouldn't have had much in the way of irrational fear to buy into as a white male).
I began showing up to school dressed as a woman and wearing a wig (because my hair hasn't grown out to a point where I'm satisfied that it looks feminine enough for my own tastes) and I wear mastectomy prosthesis because I like the way I look with boobs. I put on makeup before I leave the apartment. This came as a bit of a shock to many of my school friends, who I had to refrain from directly coming out to for other reasons that are logical to those friends and I but do not otherwise concern anyone else. My transition has been, in this very short period of time, fairly smooth.
 |
| This includes looking fabulous in Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel leggings |
None of the Trump supporters were openly hostile towards me, and if they noticed that I was trans then they didn't give any indication that it mattered to them. While that's great, I was still uncomfortable around them. I know a lot of Trump supporters, specifically family members, who don't buy into the whole racism or misogyny bit. They support much of Trump's economic platforms, or else just despised Hillary. They're not bad people and I continue to love them even though our opinions on the matter differ. So why should these student Trump supporters make me uncomfortable?
The first time they made me especially uncomfortable was when the front of the crowd began to chant "Human rights matter," and the Trump supporters (somewhere around the middle where I was) began to chant "USA" over top of the folks in the front. If it wasn't their intent to usurp the message of "human rights matter" they surely failed. Sorry, but your patriotism does not outweigh human rights on a global scale.
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| The actual protest as it left Saint Martin's University |
To me, the biggest problem that the United States has is one associated with idolatry. I am choosing this very Abrahamic word because it suits our largely Abrahamic nation. We idolize the rich, and we build our society on the myth that it is possible for anyone to get rich. And Trump, among other things, spews forth the Horatio Alger myth as his own path to success. While I think a great number of people had a great number of reasons for voting for Trump, I think the reason why Trump is most trusted is because people believe he can be trusted with money.
I'm not going to make the argument that he cannot be trusted with money. I'm not writing this to attack Trump. I just want to point out that it doesn't take much digging to find something that's terribly wrong with this country, something that has been consistently demonstrably untrue for two hundred and forty years of American history. And it is something that has been protested against for almost the entirety of the twentieth century.
 |
| This dapper fellow just wants the chance to eat - he isn't concerned with the capital gains tax |
But I am ashamed of what extremists have been doing in the name of patriotism. Especially this past year. Especially this last week. And just like my feelings about the Confederate Flag and the swastika, the chant "USA" has become synonymous with hate speech in my mind. It doesn't represent proud patriotism, crowned good with brotherhood. It represents angry, frustrated people trying to yell their way to greatness. The news media tells us, "we have never been more divided in American history."
 |
| Though these gentlemen might disagree |
But what I find curious are two things: first, if the majority of protesters did vote, which I think it seems safe to assume they did, what does that say for the stereotype of voters in their age ranges? Most of them seemed to be typical college students, early twenties. Not your traditional voters. Second, if they didn't vote, why would they choose to enter the political process now, outside of the bureaucracy that allows the system to change?
I don't have answers to these questions. I hope someone with more journalistic wherewithal is out there doing the research right now. I'd be fascinated to interpret the data.
Something else I reflected on while I was walking up the street was how grateful I was to be privileged enough to be part of a protest where I wasn't getting attacked by dogs, or tear gassed, or pepper sprayed, or arrested. There are still some very big protests in this country - vital ones that aren't related to president elect Trump at all - where that kind of thing is still happening.
 |
| Like the Dakota Oil Pipelines |
But should it come to it, I know that I will be in that protest. I will link arms with my brothers and sisters for a united goal should the time come.
I think that's all for my stream of consciousness reflection on the protest I took part in today.
Live long and prosper.
