The people of USA have chosen Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton.
They have chosen him inspite of all the derogatory statements, his perspective on women reducing them to mere sex objects and the multiple sexual harassment cases and child sexual abuse against him. This makes me believe that either the people deep down inside are like the man Trump is , they think there is nothing wrong in being that way or simply put, maybe our issues are non-issues to most of the people. Even with so much of resistance visible on media including social media against the kind of leadership Trump endorsed, people have quietly gone and cast their vote to him. Now I even read a Muslim lady journalist Asra Q. Nomani write an article on why she voted for Trump and throughout her narrative, she sounds defensive on being one of those ‘silent secret Trump supporters’.
Trump might be having any number of aces but a man like him is a defeat for the cause of securing safety, dignity and justice for women not just in the US but all around the world.
I did not have to spend too much time to understand how more people voted for Trump than for Hillary because I was soon bombarded on social media on my post with the rationale so many of Trump’s supporters had. But the most interesting ones for me were the extreme dislike for a woman who has political aspirations of becoming the President of United States of America calling Hillary Clinton ‘power hungry’ and ‘war enthusiast’. They called her a murderer for supporting abortion and a ‘tested devil’ worse than a playboy that Trump was for the way she defended her husband against the allegations Bill Clinton faced at that time. Interestingly, the majority are focusing on other promises made during the election campaign but none of them are looking at how things will change for women if this man is the President.
When serious crimes against women like rape, molestation, bragging about raping a woman and getting away with it, making remarks like ‘Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything (if you are a star)’, objectifying women and positioning it as something to be accepted are being dismissed as being part of an ordinary man, or even a ‘playboy’ is a serious concern for the position and safety of women. I dread to think of how such a lax response to rape and sexual assault of women by a man who is becoming the President will affect the tolerance to such serious crimes in countries like India which has been battling to control its most serious problem of rising rape cases.
One male friend dismissed my argument with, ‘Most men are like him. He is nothing extra ordinary’. That statement, I believe, is the beginning of exercising tolerance to sexual crimes against women.
Women, wake up. There is nobody who is going to fight for our rights to safety and dignity if you don’t take the onus and lead this movement. The world over people will have indicators to test their leaders and Presidents and none of those indicators will include your welfare. They will talk about policies and measures that only fan the needs of men and patriarchy and issues of women will remain sidelined. Women who have aspirations will always be called ‘power hungry’ when in reality, people are not ready to accept women as their leaders. Rise in the wake of the reality that surrounds you and look, your rights are not even a point of consideration at the time people make choices on who is going to lead the nation and how? Make our issues an important core indicator. We have a lot of work to do.
America has had 227 years of male presidents and zero years of female presidents. Hillary Clinton is a former secretary of state, U.S senator, and first lady, making her one of the most qualified presidential candidates in U.S history. Her opponent ridiculed her saying all she had going for her was the women’s card but how many people in the US or anywhere in the world even care for women issues?
Just like a person using a fake certificate while applying for the position to head an organization is disqualified no matter what other remarkable skills he/she has, a man who has raped and infringed on a woman’s dignity should be disqualified from such a high position! Speaking about Trump’s vision in other areas (!!) is like talking about the skills of a person who has conned his way through to get a job! When you don’t possess the basic principles of truth and goodness, you should be rejected as a person to lead a nation.
I reject Donald Trump. I cannot look at his talents in any other area-no! Because if Trump is the President of USA, it will validate every rapist and molester.
Source: Imphal Free Press
