It's Over

In listening to the speakers last night at the Democratic National Convention, from the First Lady to Senator Sanders, I was reminded of the fact that the politics of hope on which this president rode into office has today been replaced by the politics of fear and cynicism. This week does not mark a celebratory moment, but rather serves as a notice that the politics of hope will die with the end of this campaign and of this presidency, regardless of the outcome of this election. Neither Clinton nor Trump serves as the rightful heir to the Obama legacy, to that one shining moment in Grant Park where it truly seemed like a new world was possible. The torch has been passed from the politics of "Yes We Can" to "I'm With Her" and "I Alone Can Fix It"; the sense of collective purpose has been lost. Although the ongoing movements for social change will persist, the climate in which they will do so has shifted from one of "we're in this together" to "us versus them".

I, like so many other young people, have been genuinely inspired by President Obama and Senator Sanders. It is the older generations who seem to be the ones infected by the all-too-common affliction of defeatism. Thus, for me this represents a lost moment for American politics. If 2008 was this generation's 1960, then 2016 is our 1968, with Clinton reprising the role of the ineluctable Humphrey and Trump simultaneously embodying both Nixon and Wallace. We live in a reality where the primary electoral asset of these two major party candidates is the unfavorability and unelectability of their opponent. This is not the politics we need in order to build on the legacy of this presidency, but unfortunately it may be the politics we deserve.

I vow to fight on, both in politics and in life, regardless of the obstacles that are thrown in my way. I vow to refuse to give in to fear. I vow to keep burning that torch of hope that was ignited eight long years ago.