Should Australians Be Concerned About (And Protesting) President Trump?

With Donald J. Trump the new President of the United States, a member reflects on what that means for Australia.

Due to the somewhat unintuitive electoral college system, Donald Trump is the fairly-elected president of the United States.

To some extent, we have to accept that. Unless something unexpected happens, he isn’t going away.

If you truly believe in democratic principles, then you have to welcome the outcome of an election, whether you like it or not. Perhaps there were events that unfairly influenced the election, but we should leave that for an inquiry to decide. In the meantime, we need to focus on these next four years.

The women’s marches this week were an amazing display of people power, and an awesome demonstration of what we can achieve. They were the most peaceful of protests, yet they drew the eye of the world and showed just how strongly so many people feel about Trump. And even better, they focused on specific goals: no abolishment of Planned Parenthood, and the support and continuation of rights for people of any gender, race and sexuality.

This wasn’t just millions of people saying, “I don’t like Trump”. This was millions of people saying why they don’t like Trump, and why they’re afraid.

It’s worth remembering, of course, that we don’t live in the United States. We aren’t as closely affected by Trump’s decisions as those in America, and so we may feel that we’re safe. Yet, we should still be concerned.

Although the U.S. is no longer the economic powerhouse it once was, it still holds an immense amount of sway in the world—economically, politically and culturally. Decisions and events in the U.S. tend to have a ripple effect in other countries, especially other Western countries like Australia that still live very much in its shadow.

It was only after the U.S. legislated same-sex marriage that our government started seriously looking at it, and this could easily go for other, more right-wing decisions too.

So, if you’re worried about Trump, don’t just post stuff on social media. Find ways to support those who are fighting for the basic human rights they may well lose. And keep an eye on our own government. America’s decisions may be louder and more extreme than any our government makes, but they will still have an effect on our own, and if we want Australia to continue moving towards progress, then we need to be prepared to fight for it.

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Photo: iStock