I try to avoid politics because it doesn’t help my mental health. But after listening to a press conference he gave yesterday (August 8th, 2024) at Mar-A-Lago – it brought up a deep feeling of disappointment on where our country is at this point in time. The attitudes towards women specifically are just mind blowing. When speaking he said so many things that people have agreed in general were either not true or didn’t make sense. There was one statement he made in reference to Vice President Kamala Harris that stuck out to me the most.

Former President Donald Trump said, “She’s not as smart, because she’s a woman, and she’s a certain demographic.”

That one statement just boggles my mind because it has further implications than just in reference to Vice President Harris. Those words imply that women are not as smart as men. Imagine sitting across from your sister, daughter, niece, or granddaughter and someone says that to them. How deflating that would be for their self-esteem and self-worth. While I type this I know there are some people in the MAGA circles who would make excuses for what he’s saying — the women of MAGA in particular I would LOVE to know how those words made them feel. I am sure they would sit there and dismiss it that he only meant Vice President Harris is not smart – but if you think about what he said, you have to draw the conclusion this is how he feels about ALL women.

This behavior is not new. His behavior towards women has been a trend since he first stepped into the political scene. Videos talking about grabbing women by their pussies, calling women names meant to demean them like ‘crazy’. He does this to Kamala Harris, Nancy Pelosi, and Hillary Clinton – and so many women reporters when he has done press conferences. While it’s fair to have disagreements about the policies proposed by both parties — it is completely unnecessary to demean and degrade women for simply being women. Biologically we may be different from men, but we are just as capable if not more so of being successful leaders. Our passion and enthusiasm do not make us ‘crazy’. Our varied approaches or responses to situations do not make us ‘stupid’. Everyone is an individual and to lump us all into a category like ‘crazy’ or ‘stupid’ is as narrow-minded as we can get as a society.

We are in an unprecedented time – where we have been taking steps backwards when it comes to how we treat women and how we treat our fellow human beings. Once upon a time we made decisions as a country on how things would be better for the population as a whole. Not based on one specific groups beliefs. For example with abortions (I know a touchy subject these days); whether you are pro-life or pro-choice it should be a decision only between you and your doctor. And if you are not a woman that is having to make that choice – butt out! People have lost sight of the fact that what someone you don’t know chooses to do with their own body doesn’t affect you. No one bats an eye if a celebrity gets plastic surgery, or if your neighbor went through a procedure to help them with weight loss. While they might get judged privately (which is everyone’s right) – no one is a passing laws to prevent people from getting let say: boob jobs. (I can almost guarantee the former President Trump would not be on board for that law.)

And this just spins back to the main point of this post. The fair and equal treatment of women under the law. Women are just as smart, capable and strong as men. We have women who are surgeons, scientists, mathematicians, astronauts, and incredible athletes – and hear we have someone who wants to be a leader of this country who says: “She’s not as smart, because she’s a woman.”

What’s sad is people will agree with him, and I would challenge those same people to look at their female relatives or friends. And ask yourself what if that was your daughter he was talking about? Your mother? Your sister? Your wife? Would you stand there and let someone disparage them and talk down to them like that? Would you clap, cheer and agree? Would you vote for that person? Would you honestly stand there and say, “Yes you’re right my daughter is not as smart as a man.” or “Yes, you’re right, my sister doesn’t deserve the right to make her own decisions about her own body.”?

There will never be a time where everyone in this country agrees on every single thing – that’s the beauty of our country. That’s what makes us proud of our country – our differences bring us together. This culture that the former President Trump and his MAGA base encourages is toxic – there’s no ‘nice’ way to put it. While I know we will never all agree on the same things, what we can agree on is that we need a leader who pulls together our strengths and helps balance our weaknesses. A leader who looks out for the welfare of ALL people, not just that of ‘White Men’ or people of a certain demographic. We should encourage our fellow humans to think about what’s not just good for -you- but what’s good for everyone.

Serious issues are everywhere in this election – and there is a lot of mending that needs to be done because damage has been done to our friends and neighbors. What I wish is for my fellow human beings, my fellow citizens to take a long look at their friends and neighbors and ask – is Trump the right choice? Will he bring us together? Or push us further apart? Will he make the country better for women and minorities? And when you ask yourselves this – I hope you are honest about your answer. Politics, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and the rights of minorities are heavy subjects that always have the possibility to fuel the fires of everyone’s passions. But we should always strive to treat those that are different from us with dignity and respect. Whether its a difference of religion, politics, color, or gender — we should treat others the way we hope people will treat us.

While one blog post may not change the world or the outcome of an election – I hope if you found this and chose to read with an open mind that it at least make you think. Think about your choice in the future; because the choice you make today will effect not just the next four years – but the next hundred years. The words you say, the hurtful slurs thrown at your friends, family and neighbors will continue to effect them long after you have gone.