At the end of the summer, Joe Biden and President Donald Trump were formally nominated by their respective political parties to run as candidates in the 2020 presidential election. This year’s conventions were largely different than years prior due to the coronavirus pandemic forcing both parties to re-imagine how they should be held.
This year, I tuned into both conventions, partly to see how each party would present themselves, but also to see the dynamic between Trump and Biden.
First Lady Melania Trump’s speech was what sparked my curiosity the most, not because of what she spoke about, but more so because of the hateful comments people left on social media platforms.
One Instagram user commented, “I don’t think she knows she can keep the money when she leaves.”
Another user, referring to the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), wrote, “Where is ICE when you need them?!?”
Obviously, there will always be internet trolls, but my immediate thought when reading the comment about ICE was, “Are these people leftists?” If so, why are they criticizing her for things leftists praise? Melania Trump was born in a foreign country, speaks or is familiar with several languages and came to the United States for the opportunity to live a better life.
By all means, she has succeeded. Her modeling career was immensely successful. She was photographed for several magazines, including Harper’s Bazaar, Vanity Fair and GQ. She married into a wealthy family and lives a financially stable life she would not have been able to live in her home country.
I’m not a Republican and the fact I have to admit that is silly.
These leftists are not concerned with facts but merely their own perceived reality. They wouldn’t so much bother to realize Melania Trump came to the United States in 1996 by acquiring a visitor’s visa, which eventually became a work visa, before even stepping onto American soil. She also didn’t meet her future husband until after arriving to the United States.
There seems to be a consensus that Melania Trump married Donald Trump in order to become a citizen, but they didn’t get married until 2005, the year she became a citizen. It seems because Melania Trump married an older, wealthy man that she’s nothing more than a gold digger and her personal achievements are only because of her status as a member of the Trump family.
When I bring up Melania Trump and feminism, people quickly dismiss me. Apparently, she’s not part of the “feminism is for everyone” conversation because of the person she married. One colleague told me she married and tolerates the biggest bully there is.
While this may be true, I do not demonize her for continuing the marriage. The fact that she has her own anti-bullying campaign, when her own husband has his problematic moments, could even be a jab at him.
Oftentimes, we regard public figures without the idea that they’re also human beings. Whether they have several zeroes in the bank or not, they also face everyday problems like any other person. Whether or not Melania Trump is aware of how she’s perceived by the media is not clear. But if she is, she does quite a good job at hiding it from them and I don’t blame her.
Having a husband with a loose mouth, I don’t think Melania wants to constantly defend her husband’s actions to the media and the general public. She is not responsible for her husband. He is a grown adult.
It’s clear that for the past few years, where you stand on the political spectrum can make you or break you socially. There’s no in-between, which is dangerous. One hiccup in your beliefs can mean the difference between being praised for your “woke-ness” or being canceled because of your opinion, despite the undeniable right to be entitled to one.
