If the first few weeks of Trump’s presidency were a bottle of wine, it would be described as foul rancid filth with an overpowering nose of bigotry, unsubtle notes of daft incompetence, and a sour finish leaving one longing for the end of patriarchy. It would also probably cost $40/glass at his shitty DC hotel.
So we protested. We marched. We overwhelmed Congress with phone calls. We started Facebook groups, shared information, and stood up for one another in the streets, at state capitols, and in airports.
After the first two weeks, there were a couple of articles out there touting the victories of resistance. Vox notes that, among other things:
- House Republicans abandoned a plan to gut the Congressional Ethics Office;
- The #MuslimBan garnered massive attention, and 500,000 greencard holders were granted an exemption; and
- House Republicans backed off a plan to sell off a bunch of public lands
We protestors were flying high, beginning to believe that maybe we could stop the onslaught on progressive values. Hell, a court even put a temporary stop to the Muslim Ban.
However, we also got gut-punched. Nominations started moving through the Senate, filling Trump’s cabinet with a toxic combination of racism, arrogance, and ineptitude. Senator Warren was silenced for reading the words of Coretta Scott King on the Senate floor. Despite lighting up the Senate phone lines for weeks on end against nominees, Republicans bent the knee to Dear Leader Trump, showing us once and for all that the Republican Party is the Party of Trump.
We took some body blows. To harken back to middle school, we got kicked in the nads. We quoted Bridget Jones:
We knew there would be ups and downs. We knew that no matter how cartoonishly clumsy the administration bungled about, they will eventually score a few wins. In fact, Trump and his cronies will win far more often than we will. Yep, they are going to gut some policies and programs, and there will be nothing we can do to stop it. They will roll back civil rights, put our neighbors in danger, and get through some of the most awful policies we have seen in a generation. Republicans in the House and Senate will seek to further silence anyone who speaks out in opposition. It won’t be too long before they harken back to the words of GWB: “Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists.”
We will call and march and write letters and organize the shit out of the resistance, yet we will fall short. At times, allies in the House and Senate will let us down. At yet other times, allies in our communities will let us down. There will be weeks where we just want to throw our hands over our head and scream to the heavens to make it all stop. The only reply we will receive is deafening silence. In those darkest of times, we will let ourselves down.
And then, at that moment, we will probably get kicked in the nads again.
This is when we remember the words used to describe Sen. Warren: “Nevertheless, she persisted.”
Resistance isn’t easy. But persistence is precisely what we need right now. 2018 is around the corner.
Every time we march for justice, we inspire those near and far that all hope is not lost.
Every time we raise our voice, we defeat those who seek to silence us.
Every time we organize, we get better at it in preparation for 2018.
Every time we contact our member of the House or Senate, we either inspire them to keep up the resistance or remind them that their betrayal of our values will not be forgotten any time soon.
When we post on social media, we encourage and strengthen our friends and family to keep fighting.
We will fail more often than we succeed. But every success brings a spark of hope to those Trump and his allies are seeking to put down. We will celebrate those successes and build upon them.
And when history looks back on us, it will be written: “Nevertheless, we persisted.”