To be frank, I dislike Donald Trump pretty strongly. As a bisexual woman of color, I do not believe he has my best interests at heart and if I could vote, I certainly would not vote for him. Although Joe Biden is not my ideal candidate, I would actually feel safe under his presidency. I would vote for him because of his healthcare plan, his climate change plan, his stance on social issues, and his promise to protect my reproductive rights as well as the rights of the LGBTQ+ community.

On the topic of climate change, Biden has voiced his concern for the worldwide issue and has detailed his plan to make a change. According to his website, the Biden plan for climate change will “Ensure the U.S. achieves a 100% clean energy economy and reaches net-zero emissions no later than 2050,” “Build a stronger, more resilient nation,” “Rally the rest of the world to meet the threat of climate change,” “Stand up to the abuse of power by polluters who disproportionately harm communities of color and low-income communities,” and “Fulfill our obligation to workers and communities who powered our industrial revolution and subsequent decades of economic growth.” Additionally, Biden has stated that his campaign will “not accept contributions from oil, gas and coal corporations or executives.”

However, when discussing the recent wildfires in California, Donald Trump stated, “It’ll start getting cooler, you just — you just watch.” Trump has also blatantly disregarded and ignored numerous scientists’ informed opinions on climate change and its effect on the economy. According to ABC News, “In 2018, Trump said he didn’t ‘believe’ a major federal report’s findings — from 300 experts, including from 13 federal agencies — that climate change would hurt the economy.” I would believe 300 experts over Trump any day. This is just another example of how headstrong and frankly delusional President Trump is.

Under the Trump administration, Amy Coney Barrett replaced Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, despite Ginsburg’s dying wish: “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.” To replace such an amazing woman who made groundbreaking achievements for women and the LGBTQ+ community with someone who will attempt to rid us of what RBG fought for is incomprehensible. Placing this ignorant and dishonorable nomination aside, Amy Coney Barrett would not make the country a better place for young, queer women like me. In the year 2015, Barrett signed onto an anti-marriage equality letter that cited the “indissoluble commitment of a man and a woman” and the “significance of sexual difference and the complementarity of men and women.” How can one support a president that gave this homophobic woman a seat on the Supreme Court?

Donald Trump, admittedly, has done some things for the LGBTQ+ community. Now, thanks to him, queer people can legally be denied healthcare or jobs because of their sexuality and gender. He has also filled federal courts with homophobic judges, creating a future of anti-LGBTQ+ law surpassing his presidency.

On November 4th, there will be a court case deciding whether or not private companies providing government services (such as foster care and homeless shelters) can discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community. With the new 6-3 supreme court, you can guess how that case will go, thanks to President Trump. Thanks, Mr. President, for making it incredibly hard for future me to adopt a child with my wife (if I can still marry a woman). Speaking of gay marriage, Trump once said in 2016, that he plans to appoint judges who will reverse Obergefell (7:40-8:10, https://youtu.be/7q9NlqFwwiI), a case which ruled that the fundamental right to marry is guaranteed to same-sex couples. President Trump plans to reverse this, making it so that I cannot get married to a woman I love. With the new 6-3 Supreme Court, I fear that he may achieve his goal.

LGBTQ+ rights are human rights. Even the Pope is an ally to LGBTQ+ people: “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” If the Pope himself can recognize the fundamental human rights of LGBTQ+ people, why can’t Donald Trump? The Pope does not endorse Donald Trump and has been quoted saying the following in 2016 regarding Trump: “a person who only thinks about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.”

Trump has made his intentions for abortion rights clear from 2016 during his presidential campaign. During the 2016 presidential election, Trump responded to Chris Wallace’s question regarding the overturning of Roe v. Wade: “That [the overturning of Roe v. Wade] will happen automatically in my opinion because I am putting pro-life justices on the court. I will say this it will go back to the states and the states will then make a determination.” Assuming that Trump is staying true to his word, we can expect avid attacks on Roe v. Wade if there is another term of President Trump. As a Pro-Choice woman, I believe it is a woman’s right to choose what happens to her body, and to the embryo. Under a Biden presidency, this right and other reproductive rights would be protected. 

Trump has voiced his stance on abortion before, and on May 18th of 2019 he tweeted, “I am strongly Pro-Life, with the three exceptions – Rape, Incest, and protecting the Life of the mother.” I believe that people who claim they are only pro-choice under these circumstances are essentially saying that a woman can only decide what happens to her body when she is completely violated or dying. Dwell on that for a minute.

Furthermore, the majority of the pro-life movement likes to bash Planned Parenthood for “killing babies,” despite abortions making up only 4% of their services. Planned Parenthood has saved and continues to save millions of lives through 4,960,598 STI treatment and testing services, 2,556,413 birth control services, and 520,710 breast exams and pap tests. 

President Trump upholds this movement which would take away life-changing services from women across the country. This would lead to more illegal and unsafe abortions and a higher death rate among women with breast and ovarian cancer, due to an inability to detect cancer cells early. How “pro-life” of him.

Economically, I disagree with Trump too. According to the Tax Foundation. under Biden’s plan, the nation’s top 1% of earners’ annual after-tax income would decrease by 11.3%. However, under Trump, the top 20% of earners would see a 2.4% increase in after-tax income. Trump wishes to cut taxes on the middle class, which I agree with. What I don’t agree with is his lack of taxes for the 1%. Billionaires who do not get where they are by “working hard,” rather, exploiting millions of people. Billionaires are the people who can afford to pay taxes without even making a dent in their lavish lifestyle. If billionaires paid more taxes, (like in Joe Biden’s plan) then American citizens, especially those who are low-income, would not have to pay as much. Aren’t lower taxes what conservatives and the Republican party want?

Moving on to healthcare, I would vote for Biden because I agree with his healthcare plan more than I agree with Trump’s. Biden’s healthcare plan focuses on reinforcing and expanding the Affordable Care Act via a public option and improving access to care. This would include access to healthcare for undocumented immigrants. 

Additionally, Trump refuses to condemn white supremacist groups and has told the Proud Boys, a far-right, neo-fascist, male-only organization that promotes violence to “stand back and stand by,” instead of condemning them. This is completely hypocritical to me, as he has made ANTIFA a terrorist group, but refuses to condemn alt-right hate groups. To me and other members of the left, it feels like Trump is cherrypicking who to condemn, as a lot of his supporters are racists and white supremacists. In regards to the 2017 Charlottesville white supremacist march that left one counter-protester dead, Trump claimed that there were “many sides” to blame for the violence. If you don’t condemn white supremacy, you are condoning it. Furthermore, David Duke of the KKK openly supports President Trump. Let that resonate. By voting for Trump, you are voting for the same person as the KKK this November.

Regardless of what Trump has done for the economy, his stance on the human rights of multiple marginalized groups is immensely clear. What side of history would you like to be on?