An Open Letter to My Ex-Boyfriend, a Trump Supporter

Hi, ex-boyfriend,

I've seen your posts on Facebook lately expressing your support for Donald Trump and your derision of Hillary Clinton and her supporters. I wanted to try to give you some insight into the other side, since I know how easy it is to get caught up in our respective blue and red bubbles. I've been through several election cycles where my candidate didn't win, and while I was disappointed, it was nowhere near what I'm feeling now. And since you dated me for two years, you know I'm not exactly politically active, so that should say something. A huge swath of the population is deeply concerned about the future of our country and world, and I think there are a couple things you should be worried about as well.

As a homeowner with immense love for and deep family ties in the coastal South, you should be worried that we just elected a climate change denier to run the most powerful and influential country on earth. A man who has threatened to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement and whose rumored pick to head the EPA is another climate change skeptic, both actions that could have catastrophic effects on our fragile planet that is already at a crucial tipping point.

As a man who parents a young girl, you should be worried that we just elected a president who believes women are objects that exist primarily for male gratification and they can be grabbed, groped, ridiculed, and judged at will. A man who will base her worth solely on her outside appearance, and not what's contained in her head and her heart. A man who now has the power to turn those beliefs into policies.

As a police officer who has sworn to protect our communities' safety and maintain their peace, you should be worried that we just elected a man who promotes hate, intolerance, and revenge. A man who picked as his vice president a politician with an intensely anti-civil-rights track record. A man endorsed by the KKK who encourages violence among his supporters.

As a former Marine who devoted years of his life to defending this country from threats abroad, you should be worried that we just elected a nonpolitician with zero foreign-policy experience who believes building an expensive wall is the simplistic answer to our country's deeply complicated immigration issues. A man who thinks using nuclear weapons is an acceptable way to deal with international conflicts and who now has direct access to those weapons.

I'm not writing this to preach at you or try to change your beliefs, but rather to cut through the social media noise and offer a look at the other side from someone you know, respect, and loved. And also because we spent two years together, so no matter our differing politics, I will always care about you, and I truly believe there are ways a Trump presidency will negatively affect you as well.

Nothing but love and respect,
Your ex-girlfriend