Make A Joyful Noise- An America Divided

Election week is over, and a new President elect has been announced. Many Americans suffered from sleepless nights, anxiety, constant intake of caffeine, and none stop television viewing the days following the election. Former Vice President Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States of America, and Senator Kamala Harris will be the first Black and Asian Woman Vice President.

The victory of the democratic party has left me in a confusing emotional state. While I am elated that Donald Trump with his disrespect for women, disregard for science, lack of ability to be truthful even when facts are clear, no empathy having, racist, xenophobic rhetoric spewing, nepotism loving, five children with three baby mamas having, tax evading self will be leaving the White house. I am disheartened by the number of voters who voted for him. Americans who believed in his polices, who believed that children should be kept in cages and ripped from their families. Americans who believe that it is ok for police to murder unharmed Black men. With an election this close the focus should not solely be on the Democratic or Republican party, but on the divisiveness of the country. It’s the fact that half this country upholds the notion of White supremacy, illegally separating families, that Black lives don’t matter, and police brutality is just another day in the hood. 

70 million Americans who are in the midst of a pandemic where the current president has done nothing substantial to stop the spread, but instead mock those who wear masks, and discredit the scientists voted for this man to remain in office. A virus that has infected 10,393,194 people and killed 244,271.

Of the 70 million who voted for Donald Trump, 18% were Black men and 55% were White women. Black men are brutalized and killed daily just for being BLACK. It is hard for me to wrap my brain around why a Black man not under duress or threats of violence willing voted for a man who could not publicly denounce racism. Does the accumulation of wealth and the fear of tax increase outweigh life or death? Black women have been on the frontline of the Black Lives Matter Movement fighting for the lives of Black men, and 18% had the audacity to cast their votes for an explicitly racist party that has little to no regard for their lives and well-being. A system that sees them as uneducated criminals. A system that has incarcerated more Black men today than were enslaved in 1850.

America has always shown us, (more covertly than in recent years), that no matter how much money you have as a Black man or woman in America, you are still a negro in your well-tailored Armani suit driving a luxury car with your Ivy league education. Still a negro.

Besides the 18% of Black men who voted for Trump, a reported 55% of White women voted for Trump, an increase from the last election. The Karens raised their ugly heads and warned us where they stood. Admittedly we thought it was just a few racist white women acting a fool, but this election and quite frankly the election before demonstrated that there are white women walking among us who pretend to be allies but are rather “Karens in Black Lives Matter” clothing. White women who are performative in their allyship. White women who will say “we stand with you” “we support you as mothers and sisters” then walk into a voting booth and bubble in “Donald J Trump” for president.

Biden and Harris are not the saviors of Black people, and most definitely cannot save America from its racist past that is embedded in every state, city, town, rivers, lakes and oceans. What I believe is that a Biden/Harris team is better for people of color and their quality of life and well-being. Politics is not for the poor and Black, and this has not been lost on me. But when you have a president who aspires to divide people by race, class and gender, I become fearful. 

I will continue to bask in this joyful feeling brought about by the loss of Donald Trump’s bid for a second term. I laughed, cried, danced, and jumped for joy. I called my friends and we laughed and cried together while being reflective. We felt a sense of relief. A sense of accomplishment while feeling emotionally exhausted. Today and the days ahead we will drown out the noise of voter fraud, recounts, and pending lawsuits. The good decent citizens of this country will stand by and watch the racists who were empowered over the last few years go back to hiding under sheets and behind computer screens. We will not wait or expect a concession speech from Donald Trump. We will instead wait patiently for Biden and Harris to take office, and pray they rebuild bridges that have been torn down over the last few years. 

There are Americans who still believe in America and the dream it uses to lure the ambitious, the young, and the hopeful to her shores. We hold steadfastly to the belief that America will one day atone for her sins; if not in our lifetime at least in the lifetime of our children’s children. We will hold on to the hope that love and empathy will rain and wash away narcissism, apathy, and hatred. But until then…we’ll bask in this joyful feeling. 

For more of my thoughts on this post, please visit my podcast: Dr.Tamaru Speak available on Apple, Spotify, IHeartRadio, and Spreaker

https://www.spreaker.com/user/12686448/america-divided-but-theres-joy