The Lesser Of Two Evils

After fighting for what’s right his entire life, Bernie Sanders has dropped out of the race

Brooke Huffman, Editor-in-chief of The Ledger| April 20, 2020

via Flickr.com

Bernie Sanders has been advocating for people of color since 1962, when he attended a desegregation rally against the University of Chicago.

Trigger Warning
Mentions of Rape & Sexual Assault

I was devastated to read that Bernie Sanders, a lifelong advocate and activist, had made the decision to drop out of the presidential race. Granted, I had known his chances of winning were slim, as Biden was ahead for the Democratic nomination and many were afraid to vote for Sanders due to his progressive policies. But I still had hope; maybe good would come out on top this time, maybe he would win enough delegates to represent the party. I guess Sanders, and his team of advisors, had less hope than I did.


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So now, we’re left with two options: President Trump, a loudmouthed conservative who’s shown his true colors as a bigot, or former Vice President Biden, a “democrat” with a past history of racism and a tendency to touch women without consent. We are left with two racists, two rapists, two white men who don’t represent this country’s population in the slightest.

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When they represent the one percent, people who have never been exploited by the system, how can they make decisions on behalf of people who’ve experienced more oppression than they could ever imagine? In fact, why would we even put the power in the hands of the oppressor? Oppressors of women, people of color, members of the LGBT community. Don’t allow these men to lead you; you don’t owe them your respect.

President Trump has a long history of racism, one that is often brushed off as untrue, but has left behind a trail of evidence. In 1973 the US Department of Justice found Trump to be violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to rent to black tenants, and promptly sued the Trump Management Corporation. In 1991 the book, “Trumped!: The Inside Story of the Real Donald Trump—His Cunning Rise and Spectacular Fall,” was released with the following quote from Trump, “Black guys counting my money! I hate it. The only kind of people I want counting my money are short guys that wear yarmulkes every day. … I think that the guy is lazy. And it’s probably not his fault, because laziness is a trait in blacks. It really is, I believe that. It’s not anything they can control.”

Even during his campaign and presidency, Trump’s racism has continued to shine through. In 2016 he was asked whether or not all 1.6 billion Muslims hated the US, to which he responded, “I mean a lot of them.” Or, of course, building his campaign by calling Mexican immigrants rapists who are bringing crime and bringing drugs to the US.
But don’t worry, Trump isn’t just a racist. He also spends his time sexualizing and making objectifying comments about women. In 2013 Trump said, “26,000 unreported sexual assaults in the military — only 238 convictions. What did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together?”

via middleeastmonitor.com
Before becoming the President of the United States, Donald Trump was a businessman and television personality.

This is barely the tip of the iceberg- Trump’s made more degrading comments about women then there are amendments in the constitution. These aren’t just comments either: as of 2019, 24 different women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct, ranging from rape to groping. Trump, of course, denies each of these allegations, even claiming to have never met some of the women despite photographic proof. Even further, he outright insults the women that choose to come forward, threatening to sue and silence them.

Joe Biden isn’t any better, with a similar convoluted past of disgusting remarks and behavior. During the 70s Biden actively worked with Dixiecrat Democrats, a group of white supremacists. He opposed federal desegregation, and once said “poor kids” can do just as well in school as “white kids.” Don’t let his label as a Democrat fool you, nor his work with former President Barack Obama. This is someone that was afraid of sending his kids to desegregated schools in the 70s, this is someone that advocated for “separate but equal.”

Of course, Biden shows the same lack of boundaries when it comes to women as President Trump, with many allegations of inappropriate touching, and a recent allegation of rape from former secretary Tara Reade, which the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund refuses to investigate. In 2019, he referred to a 10-year-old as good-looking, not to mention the comments he’s made as a lifeguard.

via flickr.com
Joseph Biden represented Delaware in the Senate from 1973 to 2009. He then served as the Vice President of the US from 2009 to 2017.

These men both have a pattern of disturbing behavior, of a lack of respect, a traceable trail of disgusting actions, and yet they are the two front runners of the 2020 presidential campaign. Why? Because sexual assault is no longer a condemning offense, it’s a tiny roadblock, if that. Because rape culture is so engraved into our society that these men can make comments like this without being suspect, because these comments are the norm in this country. Because you don’t need to show basic respect to earn votes, you just need money.

You don’t owe either of these men your respect, or your vote. They can’t buy your support, they can’t trick you into thinking that they aren’t bad men.

With Sanders leaving, we all have a decision to make, and I genuinely don’t know how to make it. With Sanders gone, we’re left with the lesser of two evils.