The Wessex Wire

The Student News Site of West Essex Regional High School

The Wessex Wire

The Wessex Wire

OPINION: Anti-Trump Protests are a Massive Waste of Time

In the wake of the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States, hundreds of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in major cities across America to protest the election.

The most prominent of these protests took place outside Trump Tower, with demonstrators holding signs reading “We reject the president-elect” and “Not my president.” Some protesters turned violent, clashing with police in Oakland, Calif., and Portland, Ore.

While I am also concerned that the author of “Think Big and Kick Ass” will soon control thousands of nuclear weapons, I personally feel that these demonstrations are pointless and a colossal waste of time.

Trump will be President now. I know that isn’t what millions of sane Americans want to hear right now, but it’s happening. The former host of the Celebrity Apprentice, is the next Commander-in-Chief, and these special snowflakes on Fifth Avenue aren’t going to do anything to change that. (That reminds me: do these people have any clue how much traffic congestion their obnoxious shenanigans are causing?) People are mad at these protesters and their anger warranted.

Now, I understand why these protesters are unhappy: How are Americans supposed to get behind someone who fired Gary Busey? To be fair, Trump has also made numerous controversial statements over the course of the campaign, including a Muslim ban and a border wall, but that’s besides the point.

Being upset that your candidate didn’t win isn’t a good reason to take to the streets. We have elections for a reason: to ensure that everyone has a say in who runs the country.

Now that the election is over, there is absolutely no reason whatsoever to throw a collective temper tantrum and vandalize innocent cities. Maybe the Electoral College is an outdated and corrupt institution that has singlehandedly stolen two elections from the Democrats in my short lifetime, but you citizens don’t have the power to change that it’s too late to do anything about that now.

If you think Donald Trump’s immigration policies are a disaster that will send vulnerable and harmless people back to third world cesspools, then oppose them in a productive, respectful manner. If you feel that a ban on Muslim immigration to the United States will backfire in the form of increased ISIS recruitment and Islamophobia, then help start a movement dedicated to stopping the ban. Call your congressman. Stop the whining and get moving.

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