Humanity Hallows Issue 5 Out Now
Pick up your copy on campus or read online
By Bridget Fztt
On the day that Donald Trump was elected in November, many critics hoped that, because of the checks and balances woven into the American Parliamentary system, the President alone would not have the power to influence too much of the country’s legislation. That glimmer of hope seems to have been extinguished. By the end of Trump’s first week in office, his press team have dragged society ever further into dystopia with their emphasis on ‘alternative facts’. He has reinstated the ‘global gag rule’ which will affect the ability of women from across the world to access abortions and family planning facilities. His ban of all refugee arrivals for four months, as well as blocking citizens from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia (predominantly Muslim countries) from entering the US, has also come under huge criticism, not just in America, but across the world. This is a president who seems intent on alienating huge swathes of the American electorate.
Before Trump was elected, many liberal commentators refused to take him seriously – he was widely ridiculed and comedians seemed to compete over who could conjure up the most inventive description of him (a pumpkin having a nervous breakdown – Frankie Boyle etc). Yet this very derision from a perceived liberal elite is what made him a more attractive candidate for president within the sections of society who have been ignored by those same groups for decades. We cannot ignore the economic facts. Trump spoke to people who have, in reality, never been represented by American democracy – the working class. These are people who have suffered as a result of the financial crisis, who have lost jobs, homes and security because of the failure of the Democrat party to challenge the stranglehold that big business and the investment banks have had on American politics since the Reagan era.
Trump’s particularly toxic brand of populism means that this realistic assessment of the state of society has been wrapped in divisive rhetoric – playing the age old game of ‘us v them’ in order to consolidate his victory. His misogynistic, racist and Islamophobic sentiments, now turned policies, do appeal to a certain audience of white, conservative American’s, who feel alienated by the liberal progress. This makes him dangerous because, now, as one of the most powerful people in the world, he has legitimised those sentiments – inspiring right-wing populism both in America, and closer to home. Marine Le Pen, leader of the Front National in France, Frauke Petry the leader of the neo-fascist Alternative for Germany, and Geert Wilders the leader of the anti-Islam Freedom party in Holland, all recently gathered at an ‘anti-EU counter summit’ to discuss their similar stances on leaving the EU and shared admiration of Trump.
At the same time, Trump’s policies have galvanised resistance. Liberals that were previously comfortable in their beliefs that society will simply continue to progress towards an all inclusive Utopia have been forced to pause for thought. According to the Women’s March organisers, close to five million people protested around the world on the day after Trump’s inauguration, bringing together a wide variety of concerns and campaign groups who oppose what Trump represents: racism, bigotry, misogyny, climate change denial, opposition to freedom of the press – the list goes on. As a participant of the protest in Manchester, it felt important to me to express solidarity with protestors in the US, to defend the rights of oppressed groups in society across the world who will be harmed by the confidence Trump has given to their would-be oppressors, and to re-affirm a commitment to freedom of expression, respect for diversity, and facts like the reality of climate change.
One local activist, Steph Pike, spoke about why she attended: “The presidency of Donald Trump is a huge threat to women’s rights and we’ve come together with millions of women across the world to defend the hard-won rights of women. We live in a world where women are still not equal and we need to continue to fight for full equality and liberation, and against the racism and economic inequality that Trump stands for.”
Although the days protests were significant, this was only one day of protest. In order for an international movement to develop and be successful, we need to understand why Trump was elected in the first place – largely because of the huge economic inequality that exists in American society. There is currently a seemingly unbridgeable rift between those who supported Trump and those who opposed him, and protests that only continue to assert the same liberal, progressive values as the Obama administration, will not heal it. Any successful movement will also need to address the same economic inequality, which Trump is so worryingly capable of using to his own advantage. Trump will not be able to deliver on his promise to ‘make America great again’ by kick-starting the economy and creating jobs, because of the realities of 21st-centuries globalised Capitalism.
What could unite the two sides are left-wing Socialist policies that would both solve the continual economic crises of Capitalism, and challenge the base on which the forms of oppression that Trump champions rest. This is not to say we shouldn’t continue to counteract racism, sexism, homophobia, disablism and all other forms of oppression in society as it exists now. In order to solve the problems that both sides face, and in order to defeat the underlying structural problems in society, of which Trump is only a symptom, we need to be making key economic arguments as well. Capitalism hurts everyone, and it is only through united action that we can fully challenge and defeat it.
If anybody out there is feeling demoralised by Trump’s victory, then the above is a message of hope. Though there may seem to be vast differences between the ‘left’ and ‘right’, there is in fact much which unites them. Steph Pike was also optimistic: “The marches were angry and inspiring. In Manchester 2000, women and their supporters took the streets in protest. This is only the start. I believe the resistance will continue and the unity and commitment to fight against sexism, racism and for a just and equal world is positive and exciting.”
However, if you have this commitment, she stresses the importance of acting on it: “Get involved and come together with other people who want to change the world and fight back.”
Have you protested against recent political events? Send your story to HumanityHallows.Editor@gmail.com
First week of the Trump administration: “The effects on women, people of colour and how to fight back” – Bridget Fztt
Humanity Hallows Issue 5 Out Now
Pick up your copy on campus or read online
By Bridget Fztt
On the day that Donald Trump was elected in November, many critics hoped that, because of the checks and balances woven into the American Parliamentary system, the President alone would not have the power to influence too much of the country’s legislation. That glimmer of hope seems to have been extinguished. By the end of Trump’s first week in office, his press team have dragged society ever further into dystopia with their emphasis on ‘alternative facts’. He has reinstated the ‘global gag rule’ which will affect the ability of women from across the world to access abortions and family planning facilities. His ban of all refugee arrivals for four months, as well as blocking citizens from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia (predominantly Muslim countries) from entering the US, has also come under huge criticism, not just in America, but across the world. This is a president who seems intent on alienating huge swathes of the American electorate.
Before Trump was elected, many liberal commentators refused to take him seriously – he was widely ridiculed and comedians seemed to compete over who could conjure up the most inventive description of him (a pumpkin having a nervous breakdown – Frankie Boyle etc). Yet this very derision from a perceived liberal elite is what made him a more attractive candidate for president within the sections of society who have been ignored by those same groups for decades. We cannot ignore the economic facts. Trump spoke to people who have, in reality, never been represented by American democracy – the working class. These are people who have suffered as a result of the financial crisis, who have lost jobs, homes and security because of the failure of the Democrat party to challenge the stranglehold that big business and the investment banks have had on American politics since the Reagan era.
Trump’s particularly toxic brand of populism means that this realistic assessment of the state of society has been wrapped in divisive rhetoric – playing the age old game of ‘us v them’ in order to consolidate his victory. His misogynistic, racist and Islamophobic sentiments, now turned policies, do appeal to a certain audience of white, conservative American’s, who feel alienated by the liberal progress. This makes him dangerous because, now, as one of the most powerful people in the world, he has legitimised those sentiments – inspiring right-wing populism both in America, and closer to home. Marine Le Pen, leader of the Front National in France, Frauke Petry the leader of the neo-fascist Alternative for Germany, and Geert Wilders the leader of the anti-Islam Freedom party in Holland, all recently gathered at an ‘anti-EU counter summit’ to discuss their similar stances on leaving the EU and shared admiration of Trump.
At the same time, Trump’s policies have galvanised resistance. Liberals that were previously comfortable in their beliefs that society will simply continue to progress towards an all inclusive Utopia have been forced to pause for thought. According to the Women’s March organisers, close to five million people protested around the world on the day after Trump’s inauguration, bringing together a wide variety of concerns and campaign groups who oppose what Trump represents: racism, bigotry, misogyny, climate change denial, opposition to freedom of the press – the list goes on. As a participant of the protest in Manchester, it felt important to me to express solidarity with protestors in the US, to defend the rights of oppressed groups in society across the world who will be harmed by the confidence Trump has given to their would-be oppressors, and to re-affirm a commitment to freedom of expression, respect for diversity, and facts like the reality of climate change.
One local activist, Steph Pike, spoke about why she attended: “The presidency of Donald Trump is a huge threat to women’s rights and we’ve come together with millions of women across the world to defend the hard-won rights of women. We live in a world where women are still not equal and we need to continue to fight for full equality and liberation, and against the racism and economic inequality that Trump stands for.”
Although the days protests were significant, this was only one day of protest. In order for an international movement to develop and be successful, we need to understand why Trump was elected in the first place – largely because of the huge economic inequality that exists in American society. There is currently a seemingly unbridgeable rift between those who supported Trump and those who opposed him, and protests that only continue to assert the same liberal, progressive values as the Obama administration, will not heal it. Any successful movement will also need to address the same economic inequality, which Trump is so worryingly capable of using to his own advantage. Trump will not be able to deliver on his promise to ‘make America great again’ by kick-starting the economy and creating jobs, because of the realities of 21st-centuries globalised Capitalism.
What could unite the two sides are left-wing Socialist policies that would both solve the continual economic crises of Capitalism, and challenge the base on which the forms of oppression that Trump champions rest. This is not to say we shouldn’t continue to counteract racism, sexism, homophobia, disablism and all other forms of oppression in society as it exists now. In order to solve the problems that both sides face, and in order to defeat the underlying structural problems in society, of which Trump is only a symptom, we need to be making key economic arguments as well. Capitalism hurts everyone, and it is only through united action that we can fully challenge and defeat it.
If anybody out there is feeling demoralised by Trump’s victory, then the above is a message of hope. Though there may seem to be vast differences between the ‘left’ and ‘right’, there is in fact much which unites them. Steph Pike was also optimistic: “The marches were angry and inspiring. In Manchester 2000, women and their supporters took the streets in protest. This is only the start. I believe the resistance will continue and the unity and commitment to fight against sexism, racism and for a just and equal world is positive and exciting.”
However, if you have this commitment, she stresses the importance of acting on it: “Get involved and come together with other people who want to change the world and fight back.”
Have you protested against recent political events? Send your story to HumanityHallows.Editor@gmail.com