The past week has been rough for many of us on Yale’s campus, as we experienced frustration, fear, and sadness. Although the result of the presidential election may be hard to accept, it is consoling to see all the slogans on campus that spread love and care and to understand that political power can’t drive love and hope away from us. The road to realizing our hope may be long, but we must never stop spreading love, which will forever be our pillar for our belief.
In the meantime, it is also disturbing for me to see some posts on Facebook that express anger towards people that voted for Trump – one post that wiped out all the red states on the map. Trump won for a reason, and those Trump supporters are not just simply “foolish” or “ignorant.” To continue walking on our path towards a bright future of openness, equality, and all the values that we share, we must truly understand the other side’s motivations and thoughts instead of just ignoring them.
Understanding is not an easy process. Being a Chinese student, but having also been greatly influenced by American culture, I often find it hard to understand some mindsets in both China and the United States. These conflicting viewpoints often make me wonder what it will take to achieve a world of peace and beauty. This summer when I was in Oklahoma, I talked with a Trump supporter there and heard their side of the story and their reasoning. Although I can’t agree with their ideology, many of their reasons actually make sense to me. They did not vote for Trump because they are racist themselves, but because they wish to see a change in the current political system (whether good or bad) so that their voice can be raised and heard.
And there seems to be a parallel between the confrontational attitudes in this election and the confrontational attitudes between China and America. People in China that have never been to America have a hostile attitude towards a nation that is being depicted as “the enemy” in Chinese media. Similarly, we may also be influenced by the mainstream media that favors one point of view, and we may find it hard to understand the other side’s motivation. We all live in bubbles, and it is important for us to sometimes exit them, temporarily put down our values, and follow the logic of those who differ in order to understand them.
Brexit and the 2016 election did not happen by chance. They represent a deeper underlying trend of anti-globalization and the growth of nationalism and local protectionism around the globe. This should not deter our faith and hope in globalization and liberalism, as our path will never be a smooth one. There will always be ups and downs. But it is important for us to take a step back in our progression towards further globalization and liberalism and hear those voices that we ignored before; it is important for us to try to understand their logic. While it is unclear if the two sides can reach a consensus or not, as long as both sides can try to make the first step towards mutual understanding, we can work together to make the world a better place instead of creating a greater schism.