A Response to "Why Does Trump Win With White Men?"

This weekend, I read a troubling opinion article in the NYTimes titled "Why Does Trump Win With White Men?". 

This article captured my attention, mostly because it began by declaring America would look very different if only white males could vote. "We’d have a Senator Roy Moore representing Alabama, where 72 percent of the state’s white male voters…cast their ballot for a man who was accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl…We’d likely have a Senator David Duke from Louisiana…And there would never have been a President Barack Obama".

Writer Michael Sokolove went on to address the big question in academics: why? He begins by shoving statistics. Trump leads Biden amongst white men by a 12-percent margin: 53 to 41. The most recent NYTimes poll shows that more men back Trump than Biden (48% versus 42%) and that for women, it's the overwhelming opposite: 35% back Trump and 58% back Biden. 

Sokolove declared in his article that a "gender gap" exists between how men and women choose to vote: "Women tend to cast votes based on what they perceive as the overall benefit to the nation and their communities. Men are more self-interested." This raised question marks for me. It did not sit right with me. I wondered, is Sokolove viewing the complete picture? Does saying something like this inherently perpetuate sexism?

Sociologist Martin Gilens, the chairman of the public policy department at UCLA stated that the origins of the "gender gap" in voting likely "reflects traditional differences in male and female values and personalities, differences such as men’s greater competitiveness and concerns with issues of power and control, and women’s greater compassion and nurturance, rejection of force and violence, and concern with interpersonal relations.” This is extremely outdated language! I wrestled with Dr. Gilen's words, which didn't seem to fit right into today's context where women are increasingly gaining more rights throughout the world, delaying childbirth, entering male-dominated fields like government and business, and going to school at higher rates than ever throughout the world. 

Furthermore, Sokolove's article failed to address how toxic societal constructions surrounding "manliness" may drive the vote. The current president is brunt, displays vile behavior towards women, which his supporters seem to care little about, and rather than seeking to unite the country, he aggressively divides it. Sokolove makes the argument that white men tend to vote for Trump because their "main concern is more likely to be the balance in his 401(k) account." But in making that statement, Sokolove overlooked an entire group of white men who may vote for Trump out of desperation to adhere to "masculinity" standards. Trump's policies inhibit women's rights, such as abortion, more than Biden's. Particularly with Trump's recent Supreme Court nomination, Amy Coney Barrett, who is extremely pro-life, the current president supports policies that strengthen the patriarchy. This may also be driving the white male vote.

I appreciate how numbers-driven Sokolove's article is. And I also like how he delved into historical voting patterns, stating that the "gender gap" likely emerged around Reagan's election in 1980. He also provided many examples to support his argument. I think perhaps in a broader, historical sense, his argument about the gender gap in voting patterns may be true. But in this election, I would say it does not apply. The economy is in a recession no matter what so re-electing our current president is not a bet on 401(k)s. This year is unprecedented and it's time to change.

Election 2020 and Michael Beschloss

I'm disenchanted by the fact that I'm less than one month too young to vote in the 2020 election. In fact, I am precisely 28 days too young; the election happens just four weeks before my 18th birthday. 

Last night, Andover invited Michael Beschloss '73 to talk about the importance of the imminent November 3rd date. Beschloss is an American historian who specializes in the US Presidency. I attended his talk over Zoom on Friday night, which inspired me a new understanding of the importance of this election from a historical aspect.  

Beschloss's talk resonated most when he dissected the outlooks of the first few presidents of the United States, namely George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, and compared them to the current administration. I soaked in Beschloss's words because they reminded me of what I'd learned in my US history course last year about the founding of this country. He spoke to how George Washington's humbleness and refusal to serve a third term as the first President of the United States set a precedent for future leaders of this country. And from a historical sense, this makes sense: the two term limit wasn't amended until after FDR's third term in the late 1940s post WWII. Beschloss also mentioned how Washington and Jefferson refused to take third terms because they believed the United States President was honor-bound not too take too much power. Jefferson didn't even dress up for his inaugural day; he dressed as an ordinary citizen because he believed the role of the President was not to be monarchical. 

This part lingered with me greatly, because what this country has witnessed in the past year would put Jefferson and Washington to tears. The democracy of this country, the ability to have our voices heard through voting, is at risk. This democracy that hundreds of thousands of people died fighting for throughout the entire history of this country, that was actually the catalyst for the very founding of this country, is all at risk because we have a president who is trying to hinder our voices from being heard. 

When the President of the United States quotes the Soviet Union, snuggles up to our enemies while affronting our allies, and harbors pertinent information from the American people, I cannot help but believe this person is trying to become a dicator, not the President of a freedom-loving, democratic society that Washington and Jefferson embodied and envisioned. Our current President honors none of the values upon which this country was founded and neglects the history of this nation. Nevertheless, he advertently spreads blasphemous lies in an attempt to deceive the American people with false information. 

While I write this post today, I must be frank in that I did not always feel as strongly about voting this man out of office. His treatment of women, transactions with foreign leaders, and the image he projected of America always bothered me. Yet as an Independent, and an independent thinker, I gave him a chance. The economy was doing well before the pandemic. Unemployment rates were at a 50 year low, the mean household income had risen to over $68,000, and the market was performing well. Nevertheless, my views have shifted dramatically this year when a series of behaviors and actions undertaken by the President negated his performance beyond the returns of a strong economy. While I surely do not agree with everything the Dems propose, I adamantly stand by the fact that we need a change in leadership. We need to reinstill basic human decency. 

Would you go back to your childhood?

Every season is characterized by something different. In the winter, I think of the sun ironically. It's more glaring in the winter as it pierces right through the bare trees and reflects off the snow. Winter also brings a deathly silence outdoors. There are moments where the only thing I can hear is my own heaving breath. Sound is almost frozen, suffocating and unable to travel through the stifling air.  Spring is a beautiful time of year and is certainly my favorite season. Not the wet, chilly parts of spring, but the mild, sunny days where the grass is just beginning to reveal shades of green. The air in the spring feels wet and heavy but in a refreshing way. Unlike the winter, where sound is frozen, I hear birds for the first time in months when it's spring. Sound in my ears. That's when I know warmer weather is to come. 

When I think about summer, I'm reminded of my clothes clinging to every part of my body. Sweat pools at my sternum and I feel my socks stick to the bottoms of my shoes. I also always wear a hat outdoors in the summer. Summer is characterized by my blurry selfie camera on my phone from humidity

And then there's fall. Where we are right now. I love the fall because of the crisp air, New England colors, and because it's dahlia season. The leaves crunch everywhere I walk and pine needles that would otherwise not be affected by a storm fall at the slightest gusts of wind. But I love fall because it's also a time where I see and hear a lot of kids playing outside. Their giggles ripple through my windows where I'm studying. When I drive through town, I see kids biking, playing with chalk, jump roping, or probably playing some version of "house". 

And that's where the bittersweet edge of fall comes into play. While I feel a sprinkling of sadness with winter's approach, the ecstasy of little kids playing outsides evokes a great bittersweet taste within me. Their happiness, joy, and innocence puts my current teenage lifestyle to shame. When I see them playing "house" or trying to sell things outside it's reminds me of what unabridged imagination can do. I remember thinking I was going to become Bill Gates selling friendship bracelets and "perfume" made of grass and vanilla extract outside my house when I was young.  When I was younger, anything felt tangible: if I could imagine it then it could happen. The mere possibility of every thought becoming true made me happy as a kid.

But would I forsake knowledge and darkness in return for that level of innocence again? To be stripped of all responsibilities and knowledge? Would I rather just live in bliss like that? Perhaps this points to English philosopher Jeremy Bentham's thoughts on pleasure and pain. When the world grows difficult and I start to lose control of my reins on life, perhaps I do wish I could go back a little. To relieve myself of reality. To just…be. But I wouldn't want to give up my knowledge for innocence. The world is ugly and society is not as just, perfect, or ideal as I imagined it as a kid. But I wouldn't give it up. Perhaps that's why I'm still bearing it all day by day. 

Dahlias

 It's been a difficult and long week. I don't think I've felt this stressed in a while, if ever. Balancing my performance in classes with college applications is harder than I imagined. Furthermore, the fact that classes are taking more time than I anticipated has dragged my days into midnight. 

But there's always something to appreciate, even in these grueling, last couple of weeks before my earlies are due and today, I found that bit of light at Whole Foods. By luck, the moment my mom and I walked through the door, a FiveFork Farms truck pulled up with a fresh batch of dahlias in the most watercolor-esque blends. I love flowers but I rarely buy fresh-cut ones. I dislike when a part of me almost withers with the flowers near the end of their cycle. Nonetheless, these flowers were too good to pass on. Dahlias in the most perfect, spherical shapes of the purples and pinks that I love. I hope they bring a little brilliance to your day too.