At the Republican National Convention, former NFL player Hershel Walker said, “Growing up in the deep South, I’ve seen racism up close. I know what it is and it isn’t Donald Trump. Just because someone loves and respects the flag, our national anthem, and our country doesn’t mean they don’t care about social justice…He shows how much he cares about social justice in the black community through his actions and his actions speaks louder than stickers or slogans on a jersey.” I loved this speech because it demonstrated Walker’s long-standing personal relationship with the president. He knows the content of the president’s character, and to me that means everything.
As a mother of five young children, someone who is college educated, a life-long suburban woman and a southern girl through-and-through, it is shocking and disconcerting to me that the media and Democrats get to slander, “cancel,” and use career-ending name calling to label those who do not agree with their political ideology. I am now one of those horrible categories above, not based on any of my actions or my character. These labels are simply based on the fact that I choose to support President Trump and believe in conservative values.
Martin Luther King Jr. famously said, “I look to a day when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” Is this not what all Americans should strive for? The question must be raised, then, why the Democrats are so hell-bent on judging not by one’s actions or character, but solely on who you vote for and the political ideology that you hold. We are now being separated and dare I say, segregated, by this. When did supporting our first responders and believing in a free market economy make me a racist? They use your political ideology as the marker of good and evil, and that is not a place I want to raise my children.
Conservatives, we have caved in the culture war from the Left for long enough. And where has it gotten us? It is time for us to not only take back our culture, but to say enough is enough! We will no longer be silent. It is time to prove that a nation governed by conservative values is one of law and order, one that values every single life and an America where all can prosper. It is time to fight back intellectually and make our points clearly. I commend Sens. Cotton, Paul, Rep. Jim Banks, and the others who have said enough is enough and are choosing to engage in this fight. It is far past time for the rest our leaders, at all levels of government, to find a backbone and engage in this fight without fear of being called a bigot, racist, intolerant, or whatever name the Democrats choose to throw at us.
With great hope, I watched at the convention as everyday Americans told their own personal stories of hope, grit, and redemption, gave prime-time pro-life speeches, and shared their love of our nation. President Trump and others clearly presented a path forward. No one denied the past, but instead focused on a way forward. Sen. Scott had a great line in his speech that said, “We have work to do...but I believe in the goodness of America...the promise that all men, and all women are created equal.” I completely agree with him.
Over the past three years, I have seen President Trump build an economy that enabled my husband and I to buy a home that we did not once think possible, but we are not the only ones who have reaped the benefits of a Trump presidency. I have also seen record-low unemployment in communities that are usually ignored by Democrats, lower taxes, fighting for school choice, criminal justice reform, standing for life from womb to grave, and a belief that America is worth fighting for.
I want my kids to know the value of hard-work, that there are no “free handouts,” and that how their lives turn out is based on their choices. I want them to know that even when life gets tough and choices are hard, it is always worth it, as Anna in Frozen II says, “to do the next right thing.” The Democrats, media, and even our education system are constantly contradicting and undermining these conservative values that I am instilling and teaching my children daily. I am earnestly trying to raise kids who will become valuable members of society, and I am not alone. This is the thankless and unseen work that parents like me do every day, and sending our kids into a world that completely contradicts these values and encourages them to be victims is maddening and just plain wrong.
Conservatives, we must emphatically renounce the lies and attacks from the Left, and those of us who can should proudly and loudly say who we are and what we believe in. We are a party for all people – one that unites not divides, one that does not see the color of your skin but sees people for who they are, a party that defends our president, and fights for law and order.
It is time to stand up, to defend our movement and say that this is our country too and we are willing to fight for her.