Imagine
If you as a middle-class white male are worried about what 4 more years of a Trump presidency will mean for this country, imagine the fear and anxiety a 22-year-old Black male is facing.
If you are a well-to-do white retired woman who is anxious about 4 more years of a Trump presidency, imagine being the 35-year old mother of a bi-racial child waking up to the news that Trump has told the Proud Boys to be on stand-by.
If you are a Vietnam veteran who watched your buddies die in the jungles of the Ia Drang or wither from cancer caused by Dow Chemical’s Agent Orange and you are worried about 4 more years of a Trump presidency, imagine what the 18-year old DACA recruit at Fort Benning is thinking when he wakes every morning.
If you are the university employee whose bout with Covid left you with a little more than a mild headache and three days of an elevated temperature, imagine what the 42-year old widow down the street is thinking about 4 more years of a Trump presidency. Her husband, who carried the family’s health insurance, spent 5 days intubated and hooked up to a respirator before he died. She couldn’t be with him due to the Covid restrictions at the local hospital. She feels immense guilt over that. And now she not only doesn’t have a husband – she doesn’t have health insurance.
If you are the moms of the two men shot and killed in Kenosha by a 17-year old with a military-style weapon intended only for war, imagine what they think of 4 more years of a Trump presidency when they read that a Christian group raised over $500,000 for the legal defense of Kyle Rittenhouse. Imagine what they think reading that GOP lawmakers gave that 17-year old’s mom a standing ovation when she walked into the room at one of their fundraisers. Imagine knowing that mom drove her son with that assault weapon to a town she didn’t even live in. Imagine knowing that kid called a buddy moments after killing one of the men to say: I killed somebody. Was he bragging? Is this their America too? Or is this only an America for white evangelicals who support Trump?
If you are a beloved Social Media star married to a beloved musician who suffers a miscarriage well into your 2nd Trimester, imagine what you must think of 4 more years of a Trump presidency after his zealots in the pro-life crowd cheer the death of your son claiming it was God who is punishing you and your husband for not supporting their president. Isn’t he supposed to be the president for everyone? And is that how God works? Killing babies to let pro-lifers cheer?
If you are the grandchild of a grandmother who brought the Gospel of Christ to the indigenous people in the jungles of Ecuador, imagine how you feel about 4 more years of a Trump presidency when you see that very same grandmother post racist memes to her Facebook about Barack Obama or the pandemic which she calls the “China flu” because she is wholly devoted to Trump.
If you are a Gold Star family member who lost a loved one in the war in Vietnam – the war Trump dodged 5x – imagine how you feel about 4 more years of a Trump presidency when you hear how he called soldiers losers and suckers. Imagine how you feel knowing his only interest in the military is how he can best exploit it for his own selfish gain and that he doesn’t even know the words to the Pledge of Allegiance or America the Beautiful. He makes a mockery of all things military and derides Generals who have served in numerous wars. And his own son said the tombstones at Arlington reminded him of all the businesses losses his family had sacrificed, as if the life of a soldier is nothing more than a net financial loss.
If you are the produce stocker who works 30 hours a week at Safeway, while taking classes online to get your teaching degree, imagine what you think of 4 more years of a Trump presidency when you learn that Trump, a self-proclaimed Billionaire paid only $750 in federal taxes in 2016, the year 42 percent of all voters cast their ballots early by mail in ballot or absentee ballot, the year Trump was elected by the very same election processes he now calls criminal. Shouldn’t it be criminal for billionaires like Trump to evade paying his fair share of taxes while kids like you have to pay four to five times as much in taxes and he does?
Vote this criminal out. Vote Blue.
Join me. A Gold Star daughter.
Karen Spears Zacharias is author of several books including After the Flag has Been Folded (HarperCollins).
2 Comments
Linda Thomas
about 4 years agoEnjoyed this thoughtful post. As a Black woman, and a veteran; I have watched America fail to proclaim that its Black citizens lives matter, and the lives of women. Our country is at a tipping point, either recognize all people equally or prepare to fall. As for me, I'm hopeful, cause I have the memory of my ancestors whose lives were inflicted with cruelty that I cannot even imagine. So, hell yeah, I am going to complete this journey. Sincerely, Linda #VoteBidenHarris
Karen Spears Zacharias
about 4 years agoThank you, Linda, for sharing your insights . Thank you, also, for your service. I appreciate it. And yes,, I voted #BidenHarris2020. It's time.