Everyone can now let out a sigh of relief – we have nearly made it through President Donald Trump’s first calendar year as president. For all the childish insults on Twitter, divisive speeches, and fiery rhetoric aimed at our allies as often as our enemies, it turned out to be a year led by an idiot, all sound and fury, signifying nothing.
That isn’t to say nothing changed behind the noise – indeed, his advisors, cabinet members, and legislative allies have spent the last 11 months working feverishly to dismantle anything with President Obama’s signature on it. The ramifications of rolling back environmental protections, worker protections, and the corporation-skewed tax plan will be felt for years to come. Trump has been effectively manipulated with simple platitudes by everyone from the xenophobic Steve Bannon to wealthy cartoon villain and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
The divisiveness driven by classist and racial animosity impacted Georgia from the very beginning of the year as well. Earlier this year, tens of thousands of women took to the streets of Atlanta to march against the new American president. It wasn’t long after that when a statewide conversation truly began about the place that Confederate statues and memorials have in our state. Spurred by the show of force from white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia, it became necessary to ask ourselves what those monuments represented – heritage, hate, or something in between? The biggest flashpoint in Georgia surrounded Stone Mountain, one of the largest confederate memorials in the country. Even after months of discussion, there is still no consensus on what should be done about it or any of the others.
At a minimum, historic black leaders, activists, and innovators should receive the same level of recognition and celebration as the “heroes” of the Confederacy. The erection of the Martin Luther King, Jr. statue on the Georgia Capitol grounds this year represented a good step in that direction.
Black people, both in Georgia and throughout the country, are rising up in a way that we have not seen in a long time. Yes, the election of President Obama was a historic moment for black political power, but it was driven by hope. Now, the primary driver is fear. The fear that much of the the progress of black Americans over the last eight years, not to mention the last eighty years, could be undone by archaic voter laws and policies which heavily favor white communities over black ones. At a time when schools are nearing a level of segregation not seen since the 1960s, it is clear that we cannot afford to go backwards.
Fortunately, there are many people in the country and the state that agree on the need to move forward, which means weakening the Republican stranglehold on power in this country. The good news is that, in Georgia, the GOP supermajority in the Senate was broken this year. Two House districts, HD 117 and HD 119, both went for Democrats after not seeing Democratic challengers for almost a decade. This year featured significant victories for Georgia Democrats, along with Democrats across the country. The Republican Party is no longer driven by ideology, only by loyalty to the most divisive president in American history, one who calls his political opponents “losers,” says black communities are in shambles, and would rather play golf than lead.
This year proved that loyalty to Trump is not enough to win over voters. Democrats, independents, and disillusioned Republicans are awake, we’re paying attention, and we’re voting. It is too dangerous to leave this country in the hands of Trump and his sycophants, and if 2018 goes anything like 2017, then we might just have the power to take the country back.
