People should be treated with respect regardless of their votes

People+should+be+treated+with+respect+regardless+of+their+votes

Written By Kayla Snyder, Copy Editor

I am tired. No, not in the way that I need to sleep for more than 8 hours a night. Well, yes that way too, but that’s not what I’m referring to now.

I am tired of hearing about the election. I am tired of seeing people I love and care about so upset over this election. I am tired of people excusing their votes regardless of which side they fall on.

Are a lot of people upset? Yes.

On the flip side, are a lot of people happy? Yes.

There’s a common misconception that just because someone voted for Donald Trump means that they agree 100 percent with every single thing he has said on his campaign trail. That’s not the case.

The same goes for people who voted for Hillary Clinton. I know there are a ton of Clinton voters who voted for her simply because their first choice candidate, Bernie Sanders, was not the Democratic nominee.

And that’s okay. It’s truly okay to be different.

Recently, through different leadership programs, I’ve learned that accepting and embracing differences can help you in multiple aspects of life.

It seems as if in the 21st century people tend to forget that it’s okay to disagree with differences. It’s okay. I promise it really is.

However, to assume that all Republicans are terrible and awful people is when the disagreeing goes too far. It’s okay to be happy or upset about the election result, but it’s not okay to belittle someone because of the way they voted. You have no idea what their reasoning could have been either way.

Just because someone is a Republican or a Trump supporter does not mean they don’t support the LGBT community or that they’re racist or sexist or that they hate women.

It doesn’t mean any of that.  Maybe it simply comes down to the fact that they didn’t have another candidate to choose from.

Sure, are there radical Trump supporters who believe in all of those horrible things? Yes. But to label an entire party as radical in that regard isn’t okay.

Essentially, each party has their own radicals, and it’s not okay to outwardly assume and label someone with strong words such as: criminal, racist, sexist and a host of others because of their party affiliation.

This brings me back to Point Park. All across campus, I’ve noticed “Love Trumps Hate” signs and the countless Facebook posts defending Clinton and Trump only to be consumed with negative comments trying to “win,” when in reality, no one wins. Both people get upset. That isn’t love, that’s hate.

Do people realize that by belittling people because of their political views, regardless of what they may be, that they aren’t “trumping hate?” If anything, they’re adding more hate to this world.

Politics are a hot button issue, and I understand that. But as mature adults, we should be able to respect other people’s views and opinions. Not everyone is going to think the same way or see the world in the same light, and we need to respect that as a country.

Belittling and making someone feel as if they are wrong for their beliefs is not okay, and it’s not how this country should run.

It is okay to disagree with people, and it is okay to have your own opinion. We are all entitled to our own. It’s not okay to make someone feel awful for their political views because believe it or not, political views are opinions, too.

It’s not okay to assume horrible, radical ideas about another person just because of how their vote fell.

Not every Trump supporter is racist or sexist. Not every Clinton supporter is corrupt or wrong. We’re entitled to our own opinions.

I’m not here to condone racism or condone sexism. I am here to highlight one thing: acceptance.