A 17-year old reflects on Election Day in the U.S.

Now, as a Canadian, and one who was still in high school, my concerns of the election were nothing more than the awful and quite hilarious jokes of Donald Trump and his toupee. However, as time progressed and the side effects that potentially could face not just America but countries that have no business in being part of the US government started to become more of a reality, the whole ideal was starting to weigh on my mind. Not to say my opinion of whichever candidate is only but a mere image presented by the media and is biased, as it probably is, I just simply do not care for either one of them (besides the beloved Bernie Sanders, of course).

What I have to say is not to direct or shove my opinion down anyone's throat. It is to share the most interesting and eye-opening experience of my short 17 year life that I have been on this earth…being in both Washington, DC and New York City the week during one of the most controversial elections ever.

A bit of background—I am a grade 12 student going to KSS who had the opportunity to go on an arts trip with 50 other students to Washington, DC and New York. I have always dreamed of seeing the big city, experiencing the culture, the art and the people so it was no doubt that I was going to sign up. The trip entailed three days in Washington and four in New York, visits to the White House, Smithsonian, Broadway and more. The suspense that was building up for the trip was eating away at me for 12 months, I just couldn’t wait for November 6th, 2016 to come. However, it wasn’t until September of this year I realized our dates of visiting Washington landed on the exact time of the American Election, meaning, we would literally be at the White House on November 8th.

Now I am not sure if this news either scared or excited me, regardless I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Finally, the time had come, the days narrowing down to America’s fate as Trump and Clinton delivered their final pushes for becoming president of the United States, 50 Canadian students were off and heading to America’s Capital to be a part of history.

We landed in Washington, D.C after a gruelling twelve hours of traveling and immediately felt the tension. There was some sort of undercurrent that filled the streets, whispers of Clinton and Trump filled conversations of passing strangers as signs of both the democrats and republicans nominee circled around us.

Police and security had a stronger presence than I expected and what I would see at home (although that could have been just because we were in the US). Televisions practically everywhere were tuned to the news and people would gather in restaurants to watch intensely. However these things that stood out to me at times fell unnoticed and I would find myself forgetting that the election was in a day or two.

Perhaps it was the nervousness that the American people were experiencing or because our days were jam-packed with memorials and museums (probably the busy days). Yet to be completely and utterly honest, I was expecting a lot more. Riots, protests, peaceful or violent rejections of whichever candidate was elected gave me false ideas of what to expect, and cluelessly thought it would be shown before the election happened. That being said my experience was almost underwhelming when leading up to the election, giving me hope that whatever the outcome, people would stay civil.

“It’s historic for us and sadly it’s historic for the world” ~ Mike Epstein.

The day of the election was a lot like any other. Luckily with how our days panned out we ended up seeing the White House on November 8th, and it struck me strange how I was looking at where all the leaders of the United States (except a few) lived. The presidents that lead their country to and from war, ones that fought for human rights and abolished slavery, and of course the first American black president all lived in a large white house- and soon in a few hours either a businessman or the first woman president would be next to call it home.

Later that day, we stopped by the Smithsonian as well as the Lincoln Memorial and headed back to the hotel. Being in Washington we wouldn’t be able to see the results until around midnight and with it being such a long day we crashed not knowing until the next morning. Waking up and finding out Donald Trump had just won the election left a mixture of feelings; people in the hotel were either extremely upset or indifferent to the whole predicament.

To be frank, my feelings towards it were nothing more or nothing less than shocked, genuinely thinking Clinton would have won. I was also grateful that I hadn’t been in the position to vote and live with the result. After conversations and debate of what just happened, we then packed our bags and headed to New York City.

Ah New York, the city where dreams come true and everyone, no matter age, gender, religion, sexual orientation and so on are welcome. A vibrant and alive place where people never sleep and such a “cultural hub” as our tour guide would say. It is also one of the states that voted liberally for Hillary Clinton. Now, I said earlier that in DC I felt underwhelmed and didn’t experience what I was expecting, but in New York this wasn’t the case. It was a busy day for us, bussing for four hours, visiting the sub city of Chelsea and walking on the highland thirty feet above ground was everything I dreamed about being in New York.

Finishing the day, we got tickets to the iconic and very famous Empire State Building, going to the very top was truly eye opening and inspiring. We were outside appreciating humanity’s manmade creations when all of a sudden, chanting echoed through the city streets directly below us. Looking down eighty stories above the skyline, where rain was snow and we were in the clouds, I saw thousands upon thousands of humans blocking intersections heading towards what I would assume to be the Trump Tower.

Photography from KelownaNow.com

Being so high up it was unclear what they were chanting, all I knew was that they were mad and with a purpose. I witnessed this for about an hour until it was time for us to leave and meet downstairs. Our chaperones, teachers, and guides seemed to be in a panic, not knowing the extent of the protests—what they were about, if they were violent or not—so we ended up leaving right away only to find out that they were the makings of protesters against Trump.

The following day, I did notice some more anti-Trump signs but other than that it was quiet. Friday, however, was our next encounter with more protests and this time we were across the street from them. It was at night and we were heading to Times Square (which by the way was absolutely astonishing) and we passed the Trump Tower, which was a lot bigger than I had originally thought.

As we crossed paths with the building, protesters from another street turned and made their way to the building. The next thing I remembered was being squeezed between many New Yorkers and students from the trip being at a stand still. This isn’t to be confused with the protesters though, they were on the street, but where I was many stopped to take photos and nervously panicking to get out the way. Getting out from the crowd I got a clear view of the protestors and their signs.

The girl protesters were chanting “my body my choice” as males responded with “her body her choice” and it gave me chills. Again, our time observing the protest was short-lived as we had places to go and people to see, but I will never forget the power I felt from the people in the protest.

Photography from KelownaNow.com

The most exciting part about being in the United States during the election was on the last day. It was Saturday and our flight left at four o’clock, so we spent our day at Radio City Music Hall, The Museum of Modern Art and about a couple hours of free time. I was in a group with two of my closest friends when we left the museum to wander the streets and get some food. While looking for a cafe we stumbled upon the greatest and biggest protest we had seen yet. 5th Avenue was packed for blocks with thousands of people that again were heading towards the Trump Tower.

This was the closest I had ever been to organized mayhem. Chanting filled the streets, alternating between “Not My President!”, “Her Body, Her Choice!” and “Loves Trumps Hate!”. As my friends and I walked further down the streets I noticed that there seemed to be sections of people with common issues. For instance a large proposition of LGBT protesters stuck together and had signs relating to issues regarding the LGBT community, protests against the deportation of Muslims were grouped, Mexicans and women standing up for their rights.

Every group that had concerns and issues with Trump’s campaign were making their voices heard. As crazy as it might seem, I was excited to be a part of it, seeing people so passionate and involved, fighting for what they truly believed is right, feeling empowered, all fascinated me. Being so close to it was an incredible experience.

All in all, this American election was more than choosing a leader for the country. I believe 2016 was the election that the media and news had truly made a massive impact in pursuing citizens’ minds to fit their agenda, by placing false or exaggerated ideas for either candidate. In defence, the people came together, revolting to make their beliefs heard whether or not it was directed at the right person.

In no way do I support Trump, however, that’s not to say he hasn’t been portrayed as a monster in the media. His thoughts may be radical but it’s only a matter of time until we will know if his actions will stay true to his words. Hopefully, the future holds hope and the world to be in peace with the outcome of the election.

Happen to be caught up in the Trump election protest? Comment below and tell us how it was.