It Was Always There

One week after the devastating American election, long-buried smouldering attitudes have been brought out into the open.  The rise to power of a man who constantly spouted bigotry and misogyny has become an excuse for people to indulge in their own.

Kids at a high school in Michigan formed a human wall to prevent minority students from reaching their classes.

At Winthrop University in South Carolina, handmade black dolls were hung from a tree.

On the web site Why We're Afraid there are multiple stories of people being threatened, abused, and even sexually assaulted because "we're in Trump's America now and you can't do anything about it".

The phenomenon isn't confined to the U.S. either.  Much to the chagrin of most citizens and the government, there have been incidents in Canada too.  Among them, a park in the east end of Toronto was plastered with signs encouraging those who were "tired of political correctness" and "wondering why only white countries have to become multicultural" to join web sites affiliated with the alt-right.

My own father always distrusted people of colour - Muslims and Sikhs in particular - and was against mixed-race relationships.  But he never expressed those opinions on the job or in public because he was keenly aware of the consequences that might come upon him for doing so.

With this election, the bullies are no longer afraid of the consequences.  And they won't be deterred even though their president-elect did take to the airwaves and say "Stop it!"

Author and educator John M. Shanahan wrote, "Civilization: a thin veneer over barbarianism."  That is being proven time and again by people who are closed-minded and cruel.