Living in New York, like other cities with large media markets and progressive policies, many of us live in a bubble where economic, racial and religious diversity is the norm. This is a city where it’s not hard to believe that there’s one step between us and achieving the American dream. Many of us also believed that the vitriolic rhetoric and hubris of Donald Trump would prevent him from being elected to the highest office in the land.
Months before journalists began piecing together what led to Trump’s unprecedented victory over Hillary Clinton, I got a glimpse into how America’s rust belt is taught how to view key election issues.
Last August I flew home to Detroit to pack and move some of my belongings that were too expensive to ship when I moved to Manhattan a few months prior. So I rented a U-haul, packed it with my bedroom furniture, televisions and boxes of clothing before embarked on a 12-hour drive from the Midwest back to the East Coast.
I wasn’t on the road for more than four hours before the billboards stopped advertising new car lease specials and upcoming casino performances and starting showcasing Bible scriptures, adult entertainment shops and anti-liberal political messages. Despite the changing messaging, the common theme throughout my drive was the smaller the city population, the more conservative the billboards became. At one point during my drive, I was directed to take a detour through Stoystown, Pa. to avoid an accident on the turnpike. For miles nearly every home, church and school had blue “Trump Pence” signs proudly displayed on their lawns. Even the local police department and the fire station wanted drivers to know that “Blue Lives Matter.”
As we learned with the outcome of the election, Stoystown wasn’t the only small town in America that had become a conservative stronghold. The miles between every rest stop on the turnpike in Ohio and Pennsylvania, two key battleground states that Hillary Clinton lost to Trump, were littered with signs telling onlookers “Don’t Trust the Liberal Media” and used Bible verses to condemn abortion, religious choice and same-sex marriage.
As Trump kicked off his first week in office signing executive orders, continuing his attacks on the media and spreading misinformation, I’m left wondering where the Democratic party sees itself in this transition. While journalists, activists and celebrities fact check the President and his staffers in real-time, visible movement from left feels stagnant at a time when American’s need to hear the truth the most.
We can donate to Planned Parenthood, gather at Standing Rock and march for gender equality, but without political and economic backing - much of our efforts are “bark and no bite” against the actions of this administration. Even in our solidarity, there are millions of Americans who voted for Trump and stand by their choice because they were misled by conservative groups like WND, Big Green Radicals and the Media Research Center who twist facts and spread lies in the form of billboards and fake news.
While Americans may be divided on social issues, millions face the same challenges accessing quality health care, education and financial security. The rising support for the Affordable Care Act as Republicans plan its repeal is a testament that our leaders can no longer allow semantics to decide our future.
Whether it starts with an apology from Glenn Beck for activating the tea party or a signs along highways from the West Coast to the White House keeping Americans connected to the truth on issues that impact their jobs and families, we’re in need of support from progressive leadership.
We need to be just as outspoken against “trickle down” information sharing as we are to the “trickle down economics.” It’s the duty of our leadership to actively equip all Americans with the truth and protect us from misinformation. Doing so will not only prepare us to be better voters in the 2018 midterm elections, it will save our institutions, restore our position as an advocate for global democracy and save the lives of everyday Americans across this nation.