“Those of us who were sick of hate, tired of arguing, and sick and tired of being sick and tired, felt at ease for a moment.”
November 8, 2016. I know in my heart I will never forget election night or the events leading up to it.
When I first heard Donald Trump was running, I honestly did not take it seriously. I had watched this man get in the ring live at Wrestlemania with my own two eyes a couple of years ago for Pete’s sake! Even when he became the Republican nominee, none of it seemed real; there was simply no way we could elect the “you’re fired” guy.
Needless to say, I was wrong. For me, “Election Night: 2016” was a drunken, fiercely emotional evening for the books. If you were not celebrating that night, I assume you had a similar experience.
Fast forward through four years of chaos and civil unrest and Joe Biden has emerged victorious against Trump’s re-election campaign in 2020.
For a brief moment a wave of calm seemingly overtook our nation. Even the former president’s most vitriolic supporters appeared to have accepted defeat at first. The once-President himself, for the first time in what felt like years, remained silent. Even on Twitter.
Those of us who were sick of hate, tired of arguing, and sick and tired of being sick and tired, felt at ease for a moment.
That moment would prove to be short lived. Soon came the barrage of voter fraud accusations without evidence and a series of failed lawsuits in battleground states where Pres. Biden had proven victorious.
And just like that, floods of misinformation and online vitriol pervaded social media feeds once again.
This brings us to the present day. The former "Apprentice" Reality Star and now former President is gone without a trace. He boarded a chopper the morning of President Biden’s inauguration and I do not believe I have thought about him much since. So, things are supposed to change now, right?
Right?
Well, maybe not.
One of the pillars of President Joseph Biden’s campaign for election included his promise to reverse Trump – implemented immigration policies from day one, potentially through executive orders. Now that he has taken office, Biden has walked back his initial statements.
His administration is now claiming it will “take time,” potentially years to undo many of the policies enacted by Pres. Trump.
Under the Trump administration, thousands of migrant families were separated and detained at ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) facilities. Thousands of refugees seeking asylum will also be forced to seek protection outside of the U.S.
This is not the only area Pres. Biden is failing to deliver on early in his presidency. Through executive orders, Biden has the ability to forgive up $50,000 of student debt for up to 45 million Americans, an act he has repeatedly refused to commit.
The ongoing pandemic has forced Americans into a period of economic hardship, while alarming numbers of people have become infected – many have died.
The government has the ability to free millions of people from the shackles of their debt. Shackles thrust upon them in the pursuit of a better life.
The government has the ability to enact policies that regard the human rights of immigrants and refugees seeking asylum.
But they will not free the students, and they will not change policy. Why? Because Joe Biden is on the other side of the same coin Donald Trump is on.
It is unfortunate that those who truly want to see changes will not find them, at least not yet.
Maybe it is still too early into Biden’s presidency, but change does not feel imminent. Not in the way it should. Not for me.
Donald Trump is out of office, Joe Biden is president, and the sense of calm that had shone upon our country so briefly has quickly morphed back into a hideous, lingering divide.
But through the darkness that politics and policies provide for, remains a sliver of hope-bearing light. Americans are resilient, and despite all the chaos present in the world today, I have faith we can pull through together.