With the 2016 Presidential election getting crazier every day, it can be tough to remember that everyone’s political views should be respected — whether they’re the same as yours or not.
When I saw someone wearing a “Trump 2016” T-shirt in class, I can’t say I didn’t start judging him immediately. I assumed he was the common media portrayal of a typical Donald Trump supporter: racist, closed-minded and in denial of the realities of the world around us.
As soon as I was finished painting this mental picture of someone I’d never interacted with, I respected him for being upfront and honest about his political views — something that’s not happening too much this election cycle.
Besides all the political talk you see on social media, do you really know what your peers believe or what they think about American politics in 2016? You might not care, but maybe you should.
The people who you interact with every day in class or at work all have opinions. Some have opinions on political agendas, and some of these political agendas can be harmful and oppressive to certain demographics such as people of color, women or people with disabilities.
Trump has proven he does not care about the advancement or fair treatment of the people who belong to these groups.
If someone who I thought was a close friend supported him as a candidate, I’d be hurt. If someone who claimed to care about me as a person supported someone who has constantly pushed false information about African Americans, Mexicans and Muslims into the news cycle, further oppressing those groups, that would change the way I look at that person.
No, being a Donald Trump supporter doesn’t automatically make you a racist, but somewhere down the line, your views align with his. You might not be racist, but it shows that you’re OK with the unjust treatment of minorities in this country at the hands of people like Trump.
This person in my class was one of the brave few to wear the candidate’s political agenda across his chest. This means he was brave enough to subject himself to judgments of his character as he walked around advertising for Trump.
As I said before, it’s important that we respect everyone’s political opinions whether we agree with them or not. Despite how damaging I believe your views are to society, I respect them because I’d want you to respect mine. So to the guy wearing the Trump T-shirt to class, I respect you.
I would say I respect the person with the Confederate flag hanging in the window of their dorm room at Kirby Smith Hall, but that would be pushing it.
Brianna Rhymes is a 19-year-old mass communication sophomore from New Iberia, Louisiana.