‘The election of Trump could be a good thing’

So, we all know that 2016 was a terrible year. Aside from lots of celebrity deaths, zoo keepers shot an unarmed gorilla, the UK decided to leave Europe and America – not wanting to be outdone – turned it up to 11 and elected Donald Trump. But 2017 is now upon us and like the hangover from Hell, we will have to deal with the fallout from last year’s decisions.

Now, let me get past the slightly ‘clickbait’ title. The election of Trump is one of the most terrifying moments of my lifetime and I believe the true horrors are yet to come. He’s not officially the President – or POTUS (apologies West Wing fans) – until the January 20. But, Trump’s election isn’t all bad. There are some strong positives to come out of it. Left-wing progressive environmentalists like myself might need to look pretty hard, but they are there. From potential democratic reform, to finally listening to people’s problems over corporate interest, there is a new hope. From rethinking global markets to ‘draining the swamp’ in Washington, from calling an orange an orange and meeting racism and sexism head-on, there are opportunities that come from Trump’s election.

First off: it has woken us up! Over the last few years we have all slept-walked through life. We neared, then passed the so-called ‘tipping-point’ (the point of no return) regarding climate change and have let neo-liberal economics continue to railroad world politics. This has created inequality on scales never previously known and rather than seek progressive solutions, those to bear the brunt of government initiatives have continuously been the weakest or newest members of our society. We ignored the use of drones abroad and believed that the election of Barack Obama meant we could all relax as everything was now OK. 

Trump is known as a bigoted, sexist, racist egotist who played the election like it was a game. He won. We knew all his shortfalls and laughed about it as if it were just a bad sit-com. It didn’t seem real. We patronised those who wanted change, even when they desperately looked to this TV star as salvation. But Trump’s election has shown us that being right isn’t enough. We need to act in a democracy. We need to get out and communicate, organise and campaign for the better world we believe is out there. No civil liberties campaign was ever won by sitting at home Facebooking. As Ralph Nader famously said, the road towards social and environmental justice is a never-ending uphill struggle. 

Trump’s election also highlights the dangers of taking democracy for granted. The vote was hard fought for and won but is now treated with such disdain and indifference by so many that America has one of the lowest voting participation numbers in the world. Those who didn’t vote gave a free hand to Trump. Those who continuously bitch and moan about ‘the system’ saying such insightful witticisms such as ‘whoever you vote for the government gets in’ are to blame. Non-participation just isn’t the excuse it once might have been.  

Sitting back cost the election. Many are choosing to blame Hillary Clinton, saying she ‘wasn’t exciting enough’ – as if this was ever a reason someone as extreme as Trump could win. The truth is that everybody who didn’t take part, helped lose it. Democracy cannot exist in a vacuum. It requires interaction and debate starting from a community level on up. Today’s modern media whoever they backed and the ‘debates’ just created echo-chambers of self-gratification. It’s us that lost it and we need to do something about that.

We all have to help change it! The world is what we make it. When did we sit back and just accept that systems cannot change? America was formed by an ideal to be independent and subsequent visions of freedom have changed the face of society time and time again. When people stand-up and say ‘no-more’ change does happen. But this needs people to step-up. Perhaps the most valuable lesson we can learn from Trump’s election is this: step away from social media and read a history book, learn about how ordinary people helped changed the face of America – of the world, and decide to BE the change.

This election has also shown that the state of democracy and the needs of the people are out of sync and need serious reform. For the population to feel like their vote actually counts for something then it needs to, well, count for something. For starters, Hillary actually did win more votes – yet she still lost. As a member of a small political party in the UK I know the feeling only too well, but in a clear election like for US President, how can this be the case? 

Compared to in the UK, the US system it is like the space shuttle to our donkey and a cart, but it is still archaic. It all dates back to when there wasn’t even a reliable telegraph for communication and the final word on electing the new president was debated by state representatives sent to the Electoral College. It was sensible at the time of the Founding Fathers but is outdated and unfit for purpose. 

So, America needs to really think about democratic reform. This is a gargantuan task that would never have seen the light of day previously. Now, with the backlash from election of Trump, who knows? I am in hope that reform will come to let people’s voices count once again.

Trump has brought the inherent racist and sexist beliefs held in society out into the open. As ugly as these may be, at least they are now blatantly out in the open. Alt-Right is not some neat little campus club to help you score more credits and a better job; it is a fascist group and mindset. This is the same with the sexist views that meant that some people thought Trump was better (or less worse) than Hillary – who was a woman after all. Bill Clinton’s historic infidelity was used to discredit Hillary as if it were a weakness of her own. It is very telling of a society when this can used against a Presidential candidate despite the accuser’s recent controversies such as ‘pussy-grab-gate’.

As people aren’t hiding their hateful views anymore, this lets us fight and challenge them. Unlike the insidious institutional racism and sexism that has pervaded mainstream society for so long, this blatant admission (proud declaration?) by the leader of the Free World means we can meet these issues head on. No ducking the issue now. Let’s build a better society.

Trump is deliberately baiting and challenging the drift towards global markets. China has long become the factory of the world. WalMart, the most American of American stores is basically a Chinese outlet store. Most countries are cheating our climate change targets and emissions quotas by importing products from China whilst leaving them with all the pollution and carbon dioxide costs. With the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and other recent trade deals putting corporate interests ahead of human and animal rights, pushing environmental concerns well and truly onto the back-burner time needs to be called. However destructive the Trump administration will be, might this be a tiny silver lining?

The inevitable failure of Trump to bring all the jobs back to America and to make America great again will be a shock to all who desperately believe. Yes, Trump is a businessman but this isn’t simply an answer to all the countries problems. As the realisation that immigrants are not to blame spreads but rather rampant capitalism. That job-exportation, mechanisation, wage cuts, increased hours and decimation of worker’s rights is the cause of their situation are in fact the root of their complaints, with business moguls like Trump champions of these retrograde reforms. To expect this realisation is a far reach. The new narrative is still going to be ‘See them, over there, they are to blame, we are GREAT!’ and it’s going to be louder than ever. But here’s living in hope.

During the Iraq War I lived in Colorado and my bumper sticker read ‘Yee-Ha! is not a foreign policy’. I was pulled-over and intimidated by police and harassed at traffic lights. That was under Bush, and I didn’t think America’s reputation abroad could fall any further, now there’s Trump. His ‘secret plan to destroy ISIS’ can only be paralleled with Gen Curtis LeMay’s famous desire during Vietnam to ‘bomb the enemy back into the Stone Age’. Trump’s ‘Yee-Ha!’ foreign policy will soon be shown for what it is. With hope the heartland of America will discover that the world is a big and complex place and sending in the ‘good-old-boys’ was never anything more than a deluded fantasy.

Fake news is finally being talked about. Who knows where this will go. If anywhere? What’s the difference between parody and fake news? The Murdoch media and fake news – where does that one even begin and end? The president-elect himself just makes stuff up on a daily basis. But people are at least talking about this at last. Sources and origins of statements are being questioned. As a history-buff this is long-lost music to my ears!

Lastly, might there actually be a challenge to the Establishment? After all, this is the belief that helped form America in the first place. Challenging corporate America’s grip on the political system could only be a good thing. We saw no serious financial reform following the banking collapse, instead it just enriched bankers whilst bankrupting working people the world over. War has continued to escalate despite promises otherwise and inequality is larger than it has ever been. If Trump really intends to ‘Drain the Swamp’ this could indeed benefit us all. Perhaps another knock-on effect would be an increase in political participation too? But, like most of what Trump says, it might have just been for effect. As he recently admitted to a post-election rally: “I always thought it sounded stupid, what does it mean? But when I said it people loved it, so I kept on saying it.”

Will politicians finally be held to their word? Will an electoral pact be formed? Will the overused claim of a ‘mandate’ that everyone uses once elected by a minority of the population finally get some true substance and meaning?

So, in the darkest of days, and there are dark days ahead, may there just be a light of hope? I think so, but it’s going to get a whole load worse first. I’m going to climb on down off my high horse now. But I’m also rolling-up my sleeves. I’m going to see how I can help with in my own little way, because, with all the problems happening across the pond, it would be too easy to forget all we are facing right here at home.

Gus Hoyt is an environmental campaigner focusing on good food and clean oceans. He is currently project managing Refill Britain with City to Sea and Geovation. He was formerly an assistant mayor and Green Party councillor for Ashley ward.

Read more from Gus Hoyt: ‘We need to make our voices count like never before’