“Ladies and gentlemen, the 45th president of the United States: Donald Trump!” No one saw it coming. No one expected it to happen. But it did. In November of 2016, the country was shaken by the unanticipated because individuals saw it as a joke—a bad one. A surprising candidate who mocked the disabled on national television, exclaimed racist remarks, and said the most outrageous statements couldn’t possibly win the election right? However, this bad joke came to fruition.
Some were ecstatic and the majority was devastated. Among these individuals, the one affected the most is the immigrant community. They became the scapegoats of the Trump campaign—unfairly so. They have experienced maltreatments equivalent to dehumanization. They have been labeled as rapists and drug-dealers—an extremely broad generalization. Although there are bad apples in every bunch, the majority of our immigrants simply want to live an honorable life of liberty and peace. Unfortunately, under the Trump administration, immigrants of this country have had to endure several years of unease.
Throughout Trump’s presidency, the immigrants of the nation have been in disarray constantly worrying about deportation, separation from their families and being unsafe in the very country they built a life in.
Throughout Trump’s presidency, innocent children brought to this country have been put in cages due to reasons they cannot control.
Throughout Trump’s presidency, DACA, a policy invoked from the Obama administration meant to protect dreamers as well as give them a chance to create their own life trajectory, has been on thin ice.
Throughout Trump’s presidency, good, hard-working, and productive people simply trying to make a living and provide a safe and bright future for their families—usually not by choice but by desperation—were forced back to the same place they were trying to escape. It shouldn’t be called the land of the free when there are people tied down by the shackles of documentation or a lack thereof. This nation was built from immigrants. Immigrants contribute a great wealth to the American economy, and they shouldn’t be ostracized in the country where they reside. No one should. Actions can be illegal, not people, and these individuals deserve better.
Fortunately, with the upcoming election, we, the people, have an opportunity to change all this. We are given a chance to make a positive impact upon the underrepresented.
Within a few months, the nation must come together once again to participate in what could be one of the most decisive elections this country has ever experienced. The battle of the red and the blue, determining the trajectory the country must take for another four years. As a collective, we must utilize the past four years of injustices as a catalyst to turn all of that around this November. When the Trump administration takes federal action against immigrants, it is only those who have the right to vote that can halt it. Ironically, those being targeted do not have this right. This is why citizens of the United States must use this opportunity to vote for those who cannot. Be a voice for those who cannot speak. Stand for those who are shackled. Fight for those who are unarmed. The step that our community takes will either uplift or bruise the underrepresented community.
Exercise your right to vote. There is not a more important time than now. We’re counting on you