On Monday, January 20, 2025, Donald J. Trump will take the oath of office and reassume the presidency.
After Mr. Trump’s first term brought a Muslim ban, family separations at the border, praise for white supremacists, tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy, withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accords, erosion of workers’ rights, isolationism on the global stage, nonsensical leadership during a global pandemic leading to thousands of deaths, denouncing and attacking peaceful protesters during racial justice marches and inciting a deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overthrow the 2020 election, the American people made a decision.
Even after Mr. Trump’s presidency, while running for a second term, the American people watched and listened as he: denounced his fellow Republicans who attempted to hold him accountable for January 6; bragged about his three U.S. Supreme Court picks that placed millions of women in medical danger after reversing Roe v. Wade; and visited courtroom after courtroom defending himself against charges stemming from fraud, defamation and sexual assault, paying hush money to a porn star, hiding top secret documents, and election subversion. Nevertheless, the American electorate assessed the situation and made their choice.
More American voters (77,303,573) decided they wanted more of Donald Trump, now a convicted felon, than the alternative. America, this is where we find ourselves, standing at the door of a second Trump presidency.
As Trump takes the oath of office on Monday, many emotions will swirl across the country. MAGA (Make America Great Again) supporters will be gleeful as they see their champion place his hand on the Bible and pledge allegiance to the United States Constitution, a document he seems to discount.
Critics of the president-elect appear numb, trying to evaluate how to proceed with a positive and constructive resistance to what will surely be a contentious and confrontational four years.
Standing beside my fellow Americans, with whom I agree and disagree, I am readying myself for the next four years. I began this process during the election, knowing that a second Trump presidency was possible.
Before Monday becomes a reality, I want to share some ideas and practices I have attempted to instill in my psyche and heart.
First, it may feel like the world will end, but we still have time to do some good. The fact remains that the next four years will be extremely difficult. I am not ignoring that truth, but history has taught us that tyrants come and go. The author of Ecclesiastes recalled: “To everything, there is a season.”
Second, even though this problematic season may eventually pass, we must provide mental, emotional and spiritual triage for those affected by Trump’s draconian policies. Project 2025 will most assuredly, directly and indirectly, harm individuals and families, especially those on the margins and the economically downtrodden. We must be ready and willing to offer empathy and resist the temptation to say, “We told you so.”
Third, I want to change my rhetoric from confrontational to invitational. While I will not be able to have productive conversations with some individuals and organizations over the next four years, I want to move away from the confrontational style of conversation and adopt a narrative form, inviting others into dialogue about personal and communal stories.
While I have stark theological and political differences with MAGA supporters, we share everyday experiences. Those shared experiences might help us find common ground on which to build.
Fourth, I am pulling away from obsessing over the news. This does not mean I will leave myself uninformed or unaware. But I acknowledge that the 24–hour news cycle does more harm than good. Being obsessed with the news placed me in a constant state of agitation and frustration.
Those states of mind were unsuitable for my ability to think through complex problems with clarity and precision. Instead, I reacted emotionally, which led to a confrontational communication style. Moving forward, I will methodically work through trusted and reliable news sources while resisting the urge to doom-scroll.
Fifth, I will start paying more attention to the positivity around me instead of constantly dwelling on the negative. Granted, the next four years will be difficult and, in some cases, devastating.
While I pledge to continue standing up, speaking out and stepping forward for inclusion, freedom and justice, I want to do so by shining a light within the darkness. As Dr. King reminded the world, “Only light can drive out darkness.”
Sixth, I am finding hope in the hopelessness of the situation. This sounds contradictory to the above paragraph, but let me explain.
A few years ago, GFM Contributing Correspondent and theologian Miguel De La Torre taught me that actual change often occurs when individuals and communities have no other options.
Personal hopelessness can evolve into communal hope, so we must see hopelessness as an opportunity to instill long-lasting equality and justice for all. Unfortunately, this means the situation will get more dire before it gets better, but let’s permit the hopelessness of a second Trump presidency to feed our hope for a better tomorrow.
Finally, I want to follow Jesus’ advice: “Be as wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” At this point, I must admit something to GFM readers: for the last eight years, Donald J. Trump has freely rented two small rooms inside my head and heart.
His presence, along with the words and actions of his followers, became all-consuming and harmful to my overall health. During the last eight years, I have struggled with depression and masking my anxieties.
Beginning with his second term, I am done.
While Trump will move into the White House on Monday, I am evicting him from my head and heart today. My eviction of Trump does not mean I will stop offering critiques of him and his policies, but it means I can no longer afford to fixate constantly.
Instead, while I will continue warning readers of Trump’s most egregious and destructive behaviors and policies, I will turn my thoughts and efforts to countering his darkness with God’s light. The former president will no longer consume my thoughts. I will focus on the neighbors Jesus told me to love. Being “wise as serpents and innocent as doves” means filling my head and heart with truth and love.
Beloved, I know many of you are worried about what will start on Monday. You have every right and valid reason to be concerned. However, remember that we’ve been here before.
The next four years will be trying, but let us not move forward in despair. People of faith must unite to find solidarity in the beauty and love in this world. As people of good faith, we can move forward, focusing on the lights that push out the darkness.
On Monday, the door to another Trump presidency will open. Let’s walk through this threshold as people who are not scared of the future but are ready to change it for the common good. Let us not walk through with fear consuming us but with the conviction that the world can improve with a concerted effort.
We cannot do this alone, so we need everyone willing to join us on this journey. On Monday, we refuse to walk through the door alone. Together, we will bravely step forward into the unknown with God’s love in our hearts and Jesus’ words on our lips.