GrampaTim

The numbers don’t lie, and the results were immediate.  While it’s true that about 60 million people voted for Donald Trump, in a country of over 330 million people, those supporters only cover 18% of the country.  For a variety of reasons, 82% did not vote for the man, making that teen showing a clear member of minority stature in this diverse nation.  Now, Trump voters are a minority, just like the members of various racial, religious, and sexual preference groups.  Being a minority has it’s privileges, and here are some the Trump voters can now embrace as their own.  Here are some things for you to consider as you are pledged into this group.

Some people really don’t like minorities.  They may never take time to know the “real you”, because those who find minority groups distasteful usually never get to know any of the members.  They are repelled by the idea of you, and have no interest in forming relationships to know anything about you.  They consider themselves the ideal members of our society, and you, and “your kind”, don’t belong in their idealized world.

Some people will say really nasty things about you.  The truth is irrelevant.  Your intentions mean nothing.  Your hard work, contributions to your community, your education, your business success;  all are totally irrelevant.  You may practice every virtue they suggest you need to embrace, but in the end, your membership in this minority makes you an undesirable.  This gives them license to attack you with rude, profane, comments, and perhaps physically assault you as well.

You may be excluded from membership in any of their groups.  You face the potential to be a social outcast because you are different from others.  They may decide you don’t belong at their gatherings, or in their clubs, or within community events.  In fact, they may not want you sitting near them in restaurants and entertainment venues.  You may be a pariah, one who is treated as if you have a contagious disease.  Of course, people may just be condescending to you, and simply never invite you to engage in any mutually pleasurable activities.

You may be the target of protests.  Large groups of people may lash out at your beliefs, even making up falsehoods about  you to turn others against your group.  No matter how much good you have done in your life, now you will be judged by that action which made you a part of this minority, and others may rally and speak out against those beliefs and objectives you embraced at the polls.

You will be looking over your shoulder, concerned about possible dangers that surround you.  Life will simply not be carefree.  You never know when someone might lash out at you because of your minority status, nor can you know who might want to actually harm you as a result.  People feel hostile toward you, and some will feel it is their right to lash out viciously.  This won’t go away.  People don’t easily forget their animosity toward minority groups.

You may feel this is all so unfair.  After all, how were you to know the negativity would be so strong ?  Those in opposition to your decision may say it’s simply Karma.  You said you wanted to make a statement against the “system” but in fact you used it to attain your goals.  You may claim that your decision was to better the country, only to find that what you believed would occur simply vanished once the election was over.  You may want to claim you know who are the minorities, and you are not one of “them”, but now you will face the reality of having membership in a very unpopular minority group.

Finally, those people who you consider “friends” may well see the need to protect their own self interests, even if it means selling you out.  It would appear that this family created deep divides in families, friendships, churches, communities, and probably the nation as a whole.   If you don’t understand their views, it’s only because you didn’t consider the harm your endorsement of this one many harmed everyone who is part of one minority or another.  Nothing you can say will sooth this over because in the final analysis, conservatives had 16 other people, all far more qualified for the office, from whom to choose.  The only difference here was the message of hate, division, and suppression preached by the man you elected.  Listen to his non-scripted speeches and you will see what makes your group now so offensive. 

Of course, it was your choice to join this minority group.  That is what makes every other minority different, because their membership is based solely on the color of their skin, their sexual identification, their religion, or their culture.  They didn’t have a choice. 

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