The day we witness the peaceful transition of presidential power in the United States is here. Inauguration of the 45th President. Today, and this specific transition are met with a lot of mixed emotions for many across the country. Donald Trump enters the White House with the lowest approval rating from the general public in U.S. history.
Amid the dissatisfaction with Trump and the overall 2016 election results, many people have announced they will not watch the inaugural. A form of personal protest. I join the dissatisfied. Believe me; I was on the losing side of 2016 locally. However, finding other activities to occupy your time and attention does not halt reality from moving forward.
My plea to you is, do not distract yourself from this moment. Listen. Take it in. Fact check. And, if you don’t like or agree with what you witness then organize. Participate. Volunteer. Vote.
If you do not want to embrace the incoming President, I hope you embrace the tradition as difficult as that may be for some. Capture whatever emotion you feel because it is human and it is real. Then, put that into your duty as an American citizen. Participate in our democracy but don’t simply wait until the next election cycle because if you do then it is too late.
Today I will watch and listen as Donald Trump becomes our 45th President. Tonight I raise a glass, thank President Obama and hope for the best as he has instilled in us over the last eight years, but I will not rely solely on it. I will then repeat and wish President Trump luck. Tomorrow, and every day after that, I will ask what my neighbors and myself are willing to do going forward to make this country a more perfect union.
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