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Thursday, Mar 28th

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You are here: Opinions Letters to the Editor Letter to the editor: Thoughts on Trump

Letter to the editor: Thoughts on Trump

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Love the man or hate the man, Donald Trump’s message to New Mexicans did inspire hope and excitement for our state’s future. Will we see the state turn Red in the next election? Maybe; Only time will tell. I want to express a few thoughts with you before I dive into, the experience of seeing a sitting president in my state, from 20 feet away.

This piece is a perspective piece, that I feel needs to be written out and put out there for consideration. Right now, I will tell you, trying to persuade someone to one side or the other on the political spectrum will not work.  We are all complex beings with emotions and ideas that are all completely our own. Accepting each other’s ideas, and thoughts for what they are is a beautiful thing, but I feel that America and our society has lost this concept.

It’s amazing when companies like Facebook and Google tell you what to think, and who to support. It blows my mind that it’s OK” for someone to spew hate in public towards our leaders or support causes that really should make us all sit back and really think about our actions. It blows my mind that the media, as liberal or conservative as you want it to be, makes our leaders out to be monsters.

President Trump’s rally was no different. Let me preface this by saying the man really is what you see is what you get. The energy of the crowd was insane. Lots of hope and excitement as he walked out on that stage and addressed the 8,000 plus people who came out to support him; whether demonstrating, in support of him, or because it’s a SITTING president in our state. The demonstrators were very few; other than the two who got escorted out, it was a wonderful experience.

He started off by thanking New Mexicans for supporting him, the “Fake News” media for being there and them for not focusing on things that were good, and of course the proud New Mexicans who were there. He addressed the people, as if you were sitting around the kitchen table.

President Trump addressed the farmers and ranchers. He is working to support them, he’s working to cut our taxes, he’s working to make livable wages happen. He addressed something that was remarkable, for the first time Hispanics as well as Native Americans are living above the poverty line. Small businesses are booming and really the economy is strong. He spoke to the people of New Mexico; he spoke about the elitist mindset and how really that has gotten out of hand.

Now for the readers who will take the time to read this thank you. I am going to speak as the educator now. It’s required by my state standards to teach bias and perspective as well as how government works. I teach history; I love history. I have studied PoliSci in depth. It’s very hard as a teacher, to teach tolerance and justice, when students are persecuted by adults because they side with a more conservative or liberal view point. Maybe the adults don’t think they are doing it, but the students feel it and observe it. That IS NOT OK. It’s never OK for educators to push their political ideologies on students. How is that teaching tolerance?

Give them the tools to discover their own thoughts and ideas. Isn’t that what we want and need? If you heard the president’s speech to New Mexicans you would’ve found this is what he feels. How many times have your said something that has been taken out of context because someone who doesn’t agree with you, doesn’t like you only focus on the negative?  If you are toting around that you tolerate and love everyone, then you need to show it, show acceptance even if you don’t agree. We have all at some point said something offensive to someone. Many of us who grew up in the ‘90s were taught about character counts.  If you are a parent, or work with our youth, please consider this.  America needs to get back to the core values.

The president addressed all New Mexicans. He didn’t exclude any groups. He praised the tribes and Hispanic heritage. His message, whether you want to believe it or not, was inclusive. He spoke about protecting the county from MS-13 and the war on drugs.

For New Mexico to have the commander in chief of the military, the President of the United States, in our state is such an honor regardless of your political ideologies. We all need to remember that if we’re going to make the place we live in a better place we need to first accept each other’s differences, quit playing the race card, be mindful and just know it’s not a presidential problem it’s a human problem. We have forgotten social norms and advocate and a lot of times it to social media post without any thoughts.

We live in a country where women are free to think and choose, where getting a job is an option, homeownership, driving the car, owning technology, are oftentimes taken for granted even having the luxury of wanting water and electricity are just viewed as things that we are entitled to, all the while there are many who are less fortunate.

Ana Hudgeons
Gallup N. M.