On 8 November, the U.S. electorate chose Donald Trump as president-elect; he is set to be inaugurated in mid-January as the 45th president of the United States of America.
The reaction worldwide included riots and calls for a re-count. In the surburbs of East London, the response has been far less intense; but some people are still strongly opposed to the likely legacy of President Trump.
Such opponents include the group of East London Humanists who met at Wanstead Library on 28 November to discuss what Trump’s presidency would mean for the whole world – including this part of it.
There were four main speakers who each voiced their concerns. First was Sally, a feminist who warned that the Trump administration will “push back the years for women”. When someone at the meeting suggested that the candidate’s antics during the election campaign were only meant to attract publicity, she replied that Trump’s sexist behaviour had revealed his truly outdated character.
The second speaker, Steve, observed that the election had already encouraged homophobic attacks on the LGBT community. When someone asked, “how can it be proven that the rise in crime rate is linked to the election?”, Steve replied that: “we don’t know for sure, but to call it a coincidence would be slightly naive.”
The third speaker, Paul, brought up the topic of discrimination against ethnic minorities and religious groups, such as Mexicans and Muslims. Paul insisted that Trump being president is “dangerous for everybody, but particularly to these innocent people”.
The final speaker was Sam, who was primarily concerned about Trump’s disregard for the environment. “It was no secret that during his campaign, he didn’t care much for our environment, and that is a huge worry”, she maintained.
The East London Humanists definitely knew what they were concerned about, and they were equally certain that President Donald Trump will cause unprecedented damage on various, different fronts. Their weakest link is what they – or any of us – can do about it, apart from continuing to question Trump’s version of events.
“Donald Trump” by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA
