Hoping it’s not too late
By Alonzo Weston
When I woke up Monday morning, it felt like Sept. 10, 2001, the day before the 9/11 attacks. The only difference then was I had no idea about the attacks and how the world would change in the aftermath.
This time I knew things would change after this election, no matter who won.
After 9/11, the tragedy brought us all together in unity. We all had a common foe. But following Tuesday’s vote, I see no unity in sight. Our common foe is now each other.
Donald Trump won the presidency partly through this division. His “Make America Great Again” promise doesn’t make a large portion of Americans feel that way. Many of us are dismayed.
We have elected a convicted felon to run our country, one whose top generals and former allies said should not be in power.
Our president now does not preach unity but promotes division. On one campaign stop, he wore the Proud Boys colors in a show of unity with those extreme right-wing racist rebels, many of whom stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Trump yanked their chain and those of other right-wing extremists when he told his supporters that if he lost this election it would be because of massive voter fraud. Remember the Proud Boys acted as Trump’s army when they stormed the Capitol. The group was ready to spring into action again if Trump lost the election Tuesday.
Now since Trump won the election there is no voter fraud and no effort to find any such thing.
What voters have elected is a dictator wannabe full of vengeance against the prosecutors and judges who oversaw his multiple criminal cases.
Trump also said that, if elected, one of his first acts as president would be freeing some of the people convicted for their roles in the Jan. 6 insurrection.
He also said he plans to round up and deport millions of illegal migrants without legal permission. The cost to deport even one million undocumented immigrants would be more than $88 billion, according to a report from the American Immigration Council.
Make America Great Again grossly ignores the fact that there was never anything great about a nation ruled for years by mass socioeconomic inequality. His victory speech said nothing about bringing about unity or even making it a priority. It’s about punishing his detractors and enemies.
Yes, our nation will change after Tuesday’s election but don’t look for more unity or any American greatness. Be careful who you vote for and think about whether you live with what you get.
I guess we’ll find out sooner than we think and hopefully, before it’s too late.
