Most people I know have pretty strong feelings about this Tuesday; some internal cocktail of apprehension, excitement, and curiosity. And yet though they may have deeply held convictions about the candidates and the issues, they pretty much understand beneath it all that they’ll be okay regardless of the outcome of the election—they always have been.
If you happen to be a white person (specifically a straight, white male), though you may be inconvenienced or bothered or displeased by what happens on Election Day, chances are your sense of safety isn’t on the line here, your very identity isn’t at risk.
This message isn’t to you.
This is to my many friends who are flat-out terrified right now.
To the LGBTQ community, to Muslim-Americans, to people of color, to immigrants, to women, I imagine you’ve felt under constant attack over the past few months. I imagine it’s all been rightly horrific to walk through it all and to see what you’ve seen and hear what you’ve heard. You’ve experienced the open hostility of your neighbors and coworkers and church friends, you’ve read their social media tirades and seen their yard signs, you’ve watched blatant bigotry against you rewarded with rising poll numbers, and you’re dreading Tuesday as your worst nightmare possibly coming true.
I want you to know that you are not alone. I want you to know that there are millions of your brothers and sisters who are for you; that we are with you now and we’ll be with you on Tuesday night—and on Wednesday morning and for the next four years.
We will not allow your homeland to be a place that feels or is dangerous to you. We will not allow our country to go backwards. We will stand with you in our neighborhoods and our communities and in our churches and our workplaces, and we will demand that you have the same access to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness that every person has. We will defend your right to marry, to have healthcare, to get paid equally, to live without fear, and to worship and love as you desire to.
As frightening and disheartening and draining as this campaign season has been, and regardless of the results of the election, you needn’t be afraid because you will not be left alone. Even if Tuesday night feels like a nightmare, the sun will rise on Wednesday morning and together we will push back against the darkness and we will continue the work of equality and diversity and justice. We will be people of the dawn and the dream.
This is your America too. You belong here. You are home here. No election or candidate or politician can change that. No amount of hateful words can alter it.
So breathe and rest easy. You’re not alone. We are in this together.
Be greatly encouraged.
P.S. And if you need someone to escort you to the polls, to support you on Election night or in the days that follow, message me here and we will make sure you have support.
