President Donald Trump’s latest racist behavior of singling out progressive women of color in Congress with demands for them to go back where they came from is continuing to provide context for the global political scene to polarize between those who support this harassment and those who support basic humanity. Former Secretary of State Madeline Albright bluntly spoke out against the president’s behavior this past week, which went from him demanding that these women “go back” on Sunday to a later in the week rally at which he happily presided over a chant of “Send her back!” targeting one of the women, no matter what nonsense Trump makes up of having “disagreed” with it.
Albright is herself an immigrant. Her family fled Europe at the outset of World War II, and she went on to become the first female Secretary of State in United States history. She insisted this past week that not only has Trump failed in his basic responsibilities as president, but it’s up to those watching to actively hold him accountable and move the country forward.
After recounting some of her story, she shared, in part:
‘Like other Americans, I expect the president to try and unite our country. It’s part of any chief executive’s job description. It’s what the “U” stands for in USA. But today, we have a leader who either doesn’t understand, or doesn’t care, about the responsibilities of his office… The time has come for all of us, from every part of the political spectrum, to reclaim America’s proud heritage by saying no to division and hate and by participating actively in our democracy on behalf of the common good. Today, we have a president who does not speak for us; we must, therefore, speak up for ourselves.’
This theme of turning opposition to Trump’s belligerence into action for America’s democracy has emerged before. Prior to the midterm elections, the Obamas participated in voter registration and turnout drives, insisting that Americans must step forward and participate in their democracy to halt the onslaught of Trumpism and all its side effects.
The United States is currently preparing for the 2020 presidential election, and the next debate in the Democratic presidential primary will be happening soon. The frontrunners in that race remain former Vice President Joe Biden and Sens. Bernie Sanders (Vt.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), and Kamala Harris (Calif.). Somewhere soon down the line, public figures like the Obamas and Albright will no doubt step in to again encourage participation in getting the eventual nominee elected.
Check out Twitter’s response to Albright…
Featured Image via screenshot
