Well, the election of 2016 is over... and it's easy to see that the results have driven people wild. Like many of you, I know (and love) many people who are broken-hearted... and I know (and love) many others who are utterly filled with joy. Those who are broken-hearted feel that their march toward a more inclusive and global America has been threatened, while those who are elated... feel that America has finally come to its senses. Those who are outraged are surprised because they thought that they had established a "new normal," which others would have to accept, even if they didn't embrace it. They thought that their battle had been won, but those who are elated believe that they are on the brink of gaining control again. They remember a time when men and women had fixed roles. They remember an age when men- black and white- fed their families by working blue-collar jobs... and they remember a world that was orderly, settled, heterosexual, and Christian. The world they grew up in was a simpler world, and it stayed that was until 1956... when Elvis appeared on stage and the stores opened on Sundays.
Change had been unleashed... and a world, which had remained more or less the same for decades, began to heave and convulse. The lines between the acceptable and unacceptable began to blur, as did the lines between the ordinary from the sacred. It began with an unprecedented generation gap and violent protests over the Viet Nam War, but it didn't stop there. There were riots in our cities and our heroes were assassinated. Abortion became legal and then acceptable, affirmative action began to gain attention, and women marched for equality, Nativity scenes were banned from the public arena, politically correct language became the only language we were allowed to speak, and individual rights began to outweigh concern for the whole. All of this was coupled with a stampede to worship at the altars of self and wealth, a growing divide between urban and rural America, and a love affair with international trade.
The times really were changing... at blinding speed. The "new" was in and the "old" was out, and those who didn't embrace the "new" weren't heard. They were dinosaurs with outdated ideas, and they were seldom even mentioned in the public dialogue. They weren't driving the bus, but they weren't invited to ride along either. They were predominantly- but by no means entirely- white... and they made their living in blue-collar jobs, or farmer's overalls. Or at least they did at one time, but in recent decades they've lived in the shadows of abandoned factories and closed-up store fronts. They've become angrier and angrier with both political parties, and they developed an "attitude," which was exacerbated every time they saw a "Happy Holidays" sign (instead of Merry Christmas) in the mall or pressed the "English" button at the ATM!
Over the decades, as people on both coasts were getting drunk on their own wine, a new silent majority began to form. It encompassed the religious crowd that Falwell talked about, but it was broader than that one... because it included many others who felt left out too. Good people throughout the midwest and the rural areas of America begin to feel as if they weren't welcome in the country anymore. If they were mentioned at all by the national media, they were mentioned in a mocking way, and they felt as if they were being ridiculed for embracing the values that had made America great. Some of the values that they embraced were wrong-headed, some of them needed to go, but they became increasingly frustrated when elitists labeled them as hateful bigots, angry white men, and religious fanatics. Neither political party paid any attention to them and the media gave no voice to their fears and frustrations. A huge segment of the country felt as if they had been silenced...until Donald Trump came down his escalator! It was an ugly campaign, with enough ugliness to go around. The media tried to mock and make money off Trump at the same time. They gave him non-stop coverage, but since they themselves were part of the coastal in-crowds, they rooted for his collapse. Toward the end, they were sure that America's new agenda would win out. They seemed certain that the coalition of enlightened people would carry the day and that the disgruntled masses of middle America would have to accept the fact that their time is over. But it did NOT happen. The other side won! The crowd who embraced the way things used to be- blue-collar employment, a Biblical foundation for America, anti-abortion laws, and in some cases, white power and male dominance- carried the electoral vote, revealing an America that is almost entirely red throughout its middle. This result was a shock to those who hadn't seen it coming, and they are upset and afraid. They are crying now...and flailing at the darkness, while country's "other half" believes that they have regained control.
In time, America will digest all of this and come to rest... but it will take time and many more tears. In the end, those who are championing change will prevail because we can't return to a social order that holds some people down and leaves others out. The new will prevail because the world has already changed and it will never be the same. However, in our rush to move on, we cannot leave others behind- not even if they're conservative white men who have blue-collar jobs and love Jesus. We cannot forget about them because they are part of the whole, and we cannot ignore the values that made us great because they are part of who we are!
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