This Moment in American Politics is Consequential

When the status quo isn’t status quo

This election cycle has been unprecedented in many ways. The idea of voting for the “lessor of two evils” has been something I’ve heard for just about every election I’ve been alive to witness, but this election has hit that tone with an added gusto, seemingly because the two primary candidates are undoubtly the worst candidates we’ve ever had to choose from.

But this is also false (well, Trump is the worst). Hilary Clinton is a career politician who has done politician-like things her whole life, both good and bad. But she’s not worse than Nixon or Bush. I’d argue she’s better suited for this than her husband was when he was sworn in. But this isn’t about personal politics, this is about the moment we all almost missed that many of us finally took in today.

The Millennial generation is often associated with negative stereotypes, both warranted and unwarranted. The technology boom has been met with the same doubts and judgments of our previous advancements. “Too much screen time” is the new “too much TV” is the new “evolution exists” is the new “the earth is round”. What we are missing, however, is the unprecidented progressive shift that has gone on in the last two decades. This advancement isn’t owned by the Millennial generation alone, but it is led by us.

Hindsight and history always give us a perspective that living in the moment does not. The 60’s and 70’s were full of progressivism in the form of minorities being allowed to vote and generally exist in the same society as the rest of us. The notion that this was ever not acceptable is abhorrent to many of us who live today, but it was a reality that was not too long ago. This generation has moved progressivism forward in more nuanced but arguably just as important ways. Having something be a rule and a right is not quite the same as having something be generally accepted. Sure, African Americans and women have been allowed to vote for decades, but up until 8 years ago and today, we never actually considered that they could lead us too.

But as soon as the voices rose, the voices of dissent have tried to be louder.

Think about how many barriers were broken at the Democratic National Convention over the last four days. The idea that mothers of the movement, disabled persons, and transgendered persons could all be given a national platform to speak is stark compared to even two decades ago. It’s this progressivism that is markedly different than the more fundamental progressivism from before. All of these groups, these people, have surely had the right to live their lives but haven’t had the security and privilege to live their lives open and with agency. In many ways, they still don’t. But the idea that they can and should is progressive in its own right.

But with every progressive push comes a push back. And right now, that is Donald Trump and his supporters.

Years of bottled up feelings of a growing insignificance is rising in the wake of this progressive shift. It’s almost as if the prejudice and hate was kept silent as long as those who were the targets of that hate were closed and silent as well. But as soon as the voices rose, the voices of dissent have tried to be louder.

So while the candidates are uniquely unfavorable, maybe we should ask why. Trump should be unfavorable. If the presidency were a job interview, he should have never made it past the application stage. But why is Clinton unfavorable? You may disagree with her policies, but does that disagreement deserve the vitriol that gets thrown her way? How are her policies worth more outward frustration than any of the other dozens of candidates? How are her mistakes worse than any other politican? They aren’t. Is it possible that by trying to judge her on her merits and looking past her gender, that we have circled back and been doubly harsh on her? It may be subtle, but it doesn’t quite feel right.

The driving force of this election cycle seemed to be to change the status quo. But the odd thing is that we already have. The past eight years have been all about changing the status quo. From universal healthcare to marriage equality to peaceful agreements with other countries, one can argue that these changes are a significant push against the status quo. The Bernie Sanders movement started as something to be waved off and ultimately succeeded. Yes, even though Sanders didn’t win the nomination, his platform was heard and has been integrated into the Democratic platform. Hell, even some of the conservative values have been integrated into the Democratic platform. Changing the status quo means changing the fundamental way that we do things, it doesn’t mean electing an unqualified demagogue.

The most important thing to take out of this election cycle to this day is that while the system is flawed and broken, it is listening to us. The Sanders movement is proof of that. The fact that both Clinton and Obama spoke out against the way campaigns are funded is proof of that. There is a long way to go, but to ignore the progressive change that has occurred is short-sighted.

When voting for the status quo means voting for the first female presidential candidate of a party currently led by the very first African American president who has listened and adopted some strongly progressive policies, you can hardly call it status quo.

Maybe this time, the status quo is the most progressive option we have.

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