I think it is important to say out loud a hard truth: What some on the left are asking and hoping for in response to Trump is undemocratic authoritarianism, just of the color that they prefer.

What I hope for and work for is an understanding is that we are not here to kick people out of the country or disempower them. We are here to listen to them, acknowledge them, work with them. We all vote, we all see each other, and we keep working.

Some call that pluralism. I call it survival. If you try to overpower everyone you disagree with, you give them permission to do the same to you. The violent, cruel, scary cycles continue.

I accept that my nation and community will include people that I deeply disagree with. Now let’s remember a system that holds us all in safety and dialogue. Survival.