Caroline Knightly and Holly Santero, Senior Editors
@KnightlyCourant @SanteroCourant
After learning that Donald Trump will be our president for the next four years, the reactions our that our nation has expressed have ranged from agreeable acceptance to complete and utter fear. Turning to media outlets like Facebook and Twitter, some people have been vocal about their hopelessness and fear for the future, while other offer words of encouragement and bravery. Sharing our own opinions with a few NCHS students and hearing what they have to say, we’ve found that, while many students believe it’s best for our country to come together and accept our president’s nomination, others are still fearful and expecting the worst.
Our nation is bigger than just one person
Interviews and opinions from Holly Santero
Since Donald Trump has been elected president, my Facebook feed has been flooded with posts expressing disgust, heartbreak, and most concerningly, fear. People of all minorities are fearing for their lives and liberties at the thought of Donald Trump being the face of the United States.
As a nation that is scared, upset, and severely divided, many are wondering what could possibly come next. The answer? Nobody can be sure, but I’m confident that there is enough good in our country to prevent the rise of an unwelcoming, oppressive nation.
Although I understand people’s fears and empathize with their grief, I think that we should be more focused on bringing our country together rather than letting our fears tear us down, something that senior Paige Freyre agreed with. “I’m not surprised how people are reacting, but it’s not the best thing for our country,” she said. “I understand being upset, but this seems exaggerated. I don’t think he’s a good person, but I think it’s important to come together since he is going to be our president for the next four years.”
Coming to terms with the fact that a man who emulated bullying, sexism, and racism during his campaign is going to be our president has been nearly impossible for some, but even those much like myself who were strongly opposed to him before the results have had to shift their mindset in order to support the future of our nation. Instead of rooting against him, we have been forced to start rooting for him. “Before the results, I was very strongly against Trump. I thought he was very disrespectful,” senior James Freyre said. “But now, we don’t really have a choice but to stand by him.”
Without a choice and with little trust in the efficacy of Trump’s political policies, I’ve had to shift my focus towards the abilities of our checks and balances system, something that has acted as an outlet for many others as well. “There’s checks and balances for a reason,” senior Tommy Gilio said. Others agree, placing their trust in the people around Trump who will hopefully guide him through his presidency, “I hope he surrounds himself with smart people who will do his job for him, because I don’t think he actually wants all of these responsibilities,” Paige said. “I’m nervous but optimistic that he won’t appoint a bunch of radical conservatives.”
If those who are nervous about the future still don’t trust system that has successfully and peacefully transferred power for the past 56 elections, my advice to you is to look to the people instead. Lifting up one another has always been a vital part to our nation’s unity, and I don’t think that any single person, even Donald Trump, can take that away from us. As Tommy said, “I’m rooting for the country, not for Donald Trump.” So no matter how much some people may fear and despise our new leader, I think the focus needs to shift towards encouraging each other that we as a nation are so much bigger than just one orange face
We have reasons to be concerned
Opinions and Interviews by Caroline Knightly
With Donald Trump’s victory, many individuals have introduced their fear and concern for the nation economically, and more importantly, socially. Although I believe that this country will achieve economic success with Trump as our president, I worry for the people, their families, but overall, their children. Yes, Donald Trump is a good businessman and yes, he knows how to handle money, but does he have the mental stability and compassion to run this country? This country that’s envied for its freedom and equality? No, he doesn’t.
He takes the term freedom and cuts it short, while he takes the term equality and destroys it. I believe that for a country to grow and develop, we need a leader that doesn’t verbally abuse women, stereotype ethnicities, and most certainly does not disrespect a single American in this country. As Tommy expressed, Trump’s ideas do not protect all Americans. “I don’t think his ‘America’ is for everyone,” Tommy said. “I think he believes that his solutions are going work, but in the eyes of others, they won’t.”
Senior Charlie Grow also agrees with the concerns regarding the social issues that Trump’s presidency will entail, “I don’t think he’s going to help unite our country socially or help any with diversity issues,” Charlie said. “He’s definitely not going to do a good job with that.”
Like Holly, I agree that with the endless social media rage, it’s important for America to come together and accept the fact that he is our president, rather than rebel against him. “I don’t think that people protesting is going to change anything,” senior Teddy Holappa said. “Blocking the streets is only inconveniencing the public and acting as a distraction to solving real problems in the nation.” While I agree with Teddy, I believe that the public is allowed to express what they want and protest their beliefs through any way they wish to do so. I believe that people, like Paige, have every right to fear for their futures. “I am a lot more scared with him as our leader rather than Hillary,” Paige said. “I feel less secure about our future in his hands rather than hers.”
However, senior Quinn Hays believes that the United States has no reason to be scared at all, simply because most people believe that Donald Trump doesn’t have as much power as he think he does. “I don’t think the public has a reason to be worried, there’s checks and balances. If he really wanted to do some of the terrible things people are saying that he’s going to do, it’s going to get shot down,” he said. “Yes, maybe they’re upset, but I don’t think they should be scared.”
Like Quinn, Paige discusses that besides her negative opinion on him, she is less concerned with the irrational decisions Trump has proposed. “I think he’s an awful person, to be frank. I also think the thing’s he’s said have been exaggerated in order to get votes,” she said. “I think with checks and balances that he won’t be able to do some of the crazy things that he say’s he’ll do.”
Through endless hatred and worry, Americans all over the nation have been displaying their concern and fright towards Donald Trump. Under the circumstances, I don’t blame them. However, in order to live a fulfilling, American life, we must look past the nonsense coming out of this clown’s mouth and focus on rerouting our country’s path as far away from his ideas as possible and towards a more equal nation.
