To say that many of us were stunned by the outcome of the 2024 presidential election would be a major understatement. I don’t watch election returns come in. Why keep myself on tenterhooks? In this case, I thought it might be days before we would know the results anyway.
Yet, as soon as I turned on my computer on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024 and read the news, I felt a physical blow to my body, such as I have never felt before. It wasn’t like an impact that came from outside. It seemed to happen within my body. I had never felt so terrified and hopeless.
Many frightening thoughts ran through my mind:
- According to any number of news sources, Donald Trump stated that China would not oppose him because President Xi Jinping “Knows I’m fu— ‘crazy’.” He said that America’s adversaries would not act against US interests under a new Trump presidency because they would fear a forceful, even unpredictable, response.
- I recalled a Yahoo News summary of a Wall Street Journal article
Trump – who has previously been criticized for praising the Russian leader [Vladimir Putin] – said he had threatened him not to invade Ukraine.
He told the [Wall Street] Journal that he said to Putin: “I’m going to hit you right in the middle of fricking Moscow.”
- This man has shown no interest in furthering the steps his predecessors have taken to reduce carbon emissions. He has bragged about grabbing women by the crotch and getting away with it. He has disparaged women, people of color, LGBT+ in crude terms, and even mocked and mimicked people with intellectual disabilities. He has openly acknowledged that he studied the written works of dictators and even admitted that he would like to be one.
My first rational thought after the initial impact was that this man will now be in charge of the military forces of the United States of America. I thought of my friends and acquaintances in other countries, “What must they think?” Do they believe a huge number of US citizens actually approve of him? Do they know how close the vote count was?
The human mind naturally seeks a single answer to the questions “How?”and “Why?” something happened. In reality, however, there are usually a number of interacting factors.
I will provide some of my answers in a series of articles, beginning with this one. Meanwhile, you will find helpful information in my book Women Can Renew the World IF and so Can You.
First, take extra care of yourself at this time.
Stay Safe
Try not to drive while you are still upset. If you must drive, please don’t further distract yourself by talking on Bluetooth or listening to an audiobook. But do try to get outdoors, even if it’s only on your patio or balcony.
Anger
The human emotion of anger evolved to serve a useful function. It triggers the fight, flight or freeze response to a dangerous situation. However, nurturing that anger is unhealthy. Our bodies are not designed to stay in the flight, fight or freeze state for long periods of time.
We need to acknowledge our anger and let it out. That doesn’t mean that we should splash it all over Facebook or lay into those who voted differently from us.
From my work in the field of consensus building, persuasion and related communication skills, I assure you that verbally attacking, or even arguing with, people who voted for Donald Trump is counterproductive. It will actually make people dig in their heels and reinforce their commitment to their own opinions. (More about that later in this series of articles.)
So how do we get the anger out of our systems when fighting, fleeing or freezing won’t help? You can shut yourself in the bathroom and shout it out. You can take it out on the weeds you’re pulling. You can punch pillows.
You might express your anger to one other like-minded person, but you don’t have to hash it out with every like-minded person you know. Nor do you have to keep going back over it with the first person. You can write all about it, then shred the paper you wrote or printed it on. (More about alternatives to counterproductive arguing in a future article in this series.)
One thing I did with my anger was donate more than usual, as much money as I prudently could, to charitable organizations that help suppressed demographic groups— women, people of color, LGBT+, immigrants etc. I also donated to reliable, unbiased sources of news—Axios, the Poynter Institute and PBS.
Be Who You Really Are
Make yourself living proof that those who believe in true equality for all humans are kind, polite and caring to all humans, even those who disagree with us. Little acts, such as an especially warm smile and thank you to a service provider or holding a door open for a stranger, will lift your mood and help the other to think well of you no matter what your respective political beliefs.
Here’s a reading that helped me:
“Now what?” I ask myself at dawn this morning.
First, feel your racing heart, your incomprehension, your sorrow and anxiety, your harsh and brittle judgments.
Second, walk outside and watch the sunrise. Hear the loon’s mournful cry. Lift your head to the eagle flying above you.
Third, work harder. Work harder at understanding; at not allowing bitterness and anger to eclipse curiosity and love; at not succumbing to the use of the word “them,” even in your most private thoughts.
There’s so much to do, so many systems to change. Don’t let these phrases – these calls to action that sound so arduous – deter you.
What other way is there to build a future where the dominant pronoun is we?
We the people. We the inhabitants of Earth. We the parts of ecosystems where all sentient life arose.
Remember: we don’t know how this story ends. We do know we have a part to play in its unfolding. Strive to play a part worthy of your life.
Zoe Weil
This is the sort of thing I have shared on Facebook and received many thanks.
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