Okay, so I know I’ve disappeared for a couple of weeks… It’s mostly due to the fact that I wanted to avoid turning “Hot Mess Mondays” into a political nightmare. Now, that the U.S. election results are in and anti-Trump protests have broken out across the country, I think it’s finally time to give my two cents on everything that’s been going on. My hope is that after this post, “Hot Mess Mondays” will return back to its roots, highlighting my love of entertainment news with the occasional mentioning of a hot mess politician.

So, let’s get it….

Hot Mess #s 1,2,3,4, and 5: The United States of America

Last Tuesday marked one of the biggest upsets in modern politics. Thanks to the obsolete electoral college, Donald Trump is to become America’s 45th president. Although Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by 200,000 votes, it was not enough to secure her the presidency, leaving many Americans, who thought Hillary’s win was a “sure thing,” in disbelief.

Needless to say, as an American and believer in our democracy, I had several emotions on Tuesday. My first emotion was stress when I saw states that were supposed to be Democrat blue turn Republican red. Then, after a little bit of stress, I turned anxious… After hours of watching the final counting of votes across states, I just wanted the media to call the election and put me and everyone else out of their misery. Next, after some extreme anxiety, I turned angry. I turned angry not because my candidate lost (technically, I voted for Hillary, but it’s not like she took home my People’s Choice Award for Most Outstanding Candidate…), but because I could not believe how many Americans voted for someone who did nothing but spew some of the most racist, homophobic, sexist, and anti-immigrant rhetoric on his campaign trail. Like, WTH…

p.s. Before reading the rest of this post, please know that I do not completely identify with either political party. I’ve spent most of my adult life as a Republican in an effort to have Black representation within the party regardless of how I ultimately voted in the general election. I have never been one to just choose a side for the sake of choosing a side. I vote for who I think will be the best person for the job, and in this case, I chose to vote for the candidate who I thought would not set us back 50 years…

Which brings me to honesty moment numero uno….

I’m actually not that surprised that Trump won. As a basic American, I was hopeful. As a Black American, however, I knew better. I knew better because I have been in an arranged marriage with white America for the last 28 years. 

Wait, but what does that even mean?

Well, let’s have honesty moment numero dos…

As a Black American, I did not choose to come to America. I was born here because my family was brought over as slaves way back when before I was even a thought. Therefore, my existence in this country is all due to a single arrangement between what I assume was a powerful African man/woman and a white man. And, due to this one arrangement, I was destined to enter a relationship with my husband, white America. I refer to my relationship with white America as a marriage because legally we are bound together and have shared many experiences, both good and bad. 

I must admit that my arranged marriage has been on the rocks for the last few years. Between the murder of Black men and women by mostly non-Black police officers, who then later received a slap on the wrist, and the silence of many white Americans on these issues, some days I just don’t know how much more I can take. There’s only so many times I can wake up in the morning, burst into tears after reading another story about police brutality involving a person of color (POC), and then get ready for work where I have to smile in the faces of my white coworkers and pretend that everything is okay.

And don’t get many started on my husband’s support for “All lives matter.” For the purposes of today’s blog, if you or my husband still don’t get what’s wrong with “All lives matter” and “Blue lives matter,” then I mean, let’s just agree to disagree peacefully because that is what America is all about. Right?….#sohelpusGod

Okay, refocusing…

In the crowning of Trump as our next president, my marriage is now completely strained with white America because of the lack of sympathy he has shown to not just me and Black Americans, but also to anyone who is simply “not like him.”

p.s. I am aware that there were some “not like him” Americans who also voted for Trump and I will never understand why. To elect an official who has ignited a hibernated hatred of those who look like you is beyond me and I didn’t major in the behavioral sciences, so…

Anyways, the fear that is now being felt by my POC, LGBT, non-religious/religious (not Christians), immigrant, and female friends, who did not vote for Trump, is unacceptable.

Do I blame all parts of my husband for Trump’s win?  Absolutely not….buuuut when you look at the breakdown of numbers, I have to say that compared to a select group of my delusional brown and female neighbors, my husband really let this country down. To be exact, fifty-eight percent of him told me that I didn’t matter and neither did the people we I hold most dear to my heart, including some of my sisters-in-law (yes, the white ones).

By voting for Trump, my husband told me that only he matters. He also told me that he is starving for attention and is tired of playing “second fiddle” to the people who are “not like him.”

Actually, now that you mention it, sometimes I do want to file my separation papers…lol But, then I come to my senses, and remember that I believe in this marriage. Through it all, I believe that white America, me, and all of our neighbors can get through this together.

However, that doesn’t mean I’m not about to watch white America like a hawk.

In doing so, I will try my hardest not to call a select group of white America racist or xenophobic….Of course, we may all have to seek serious marriage counseling because if one walks like a duck, talks like a duck, and votes for an orange duck, chances are they are a tad bit racist…But that’s okay because the same way they sometimes hate me and others, I also sometimes hate them. #honestymomentnumerotres lol

Serious note: I know that Americans were not dealt the best of cards this election, and chose to vote for the candidate who they thought would bring change in a positive way. However, a word of incredible caution. For anyone, who believes that Trump is the “anti-establishment” candidate that will help the poor, get ready for one bumpy ride. Since throughout his entire campaign, he did more offending of Americans than talking about his policies, none of us really know what type of president Trump will actually be, and that’s truly terrifying.

It is terrifying not because he is a “wild card” as the media has called him, but because the people around him, who may become some of his most trusted advisers, are members of an establishment that do not involve the majority of us. Knowing this, I encourage everyone to not become comfortable after Trump is sworn in and continue to vote at the state and local levels in an effort to put more positive figures in positions of power. I also encourage everyone not to become violent. I hope that we all will just pay attention and hold Trump accountable for any decision that may put Americans in harms way. And if he surprises us as president and does more good than harm, more power to him. BUT, if he proves to be trash, let’s get him out of here in 4 years. lol

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