During Donald Trump’s campaign, my eleven-year-old sister asked my parents, “Why does he hate my people?” She was referring to Asians as ‘her people’ since she is adopted from China.

With this newfound insight into how this man affected my young sister, my heart could not break more for what her future holds. She could not understand why someone who is supposed to be a role model, to uphold the highest power and dignity, hates an entire race before he was even president.

Yet, despite his ignorance and hate speech, he had enough support from my fellow Americans to become president. Because of this, I do not blame Trump for being president; I blame the ‘Americans’ who plunged the United States into a dark age, by voting for him.

I blame every person who sets his or her ignorance as a precedent to creating an opinion about someone. An opinion is no longer valid if it infringes upon the rights of another person, if it is hateful or demeaning, or if it is substituted for fact. It then becomes hate speech, which is a dangerous road we are currently driving on.

Hate speech has grown roots in the uneducated Americans and even some educated ones, and has developing opinions based on common misconceptions. It is unacceptable to use derogatory terms to try to prove your point. In fact, it takes away from your argument and in turn, creates hate speech.

It has become widely misunderstood that one has the right to use their beliefs and opinions to control the rights of others. The importance of an opinion is to give solutions or to offer advice, not to control or manipulate. When an opinion is used in such a way it becomes hate speech, which normally occurs when one attempts to deny someone his or her basic human rights, more often than not, minorities.

I am unable to answer why people hate others who are different from them or are passive aggressively hateful, but my best solution for hatred and misunderstanding is education. Not only academically, but socially and emotionally. In this way, education may combat the insecurities others have with themselves that they relentlessly target other people with. Hate speech is an example of this and is usually caused from misunderstanding and fear.

Culprit of judgment, I can understand to an extent some people’s discomfort with differences. However, that is not an excuse to use hate speech or to target someone because you have clashing beliefs. Patience and understanding can go a long way.

In a similar way the U.S. is now failing morally and ethically because of the abuse of privilege. People who are not affected by the executive orders of Trump and who voted for him have abused their privilege. One of America’s most prominent problems is the belief some citizens hold that another’s life is of less importance than their own.

That belief is wrong.

Their selfishness is appalling. From taking away rights from it’s citizens to not supporting foreign refugees in dire need, we are not altruistic in any sense. Our country is filled with a deep-rooted hate for everything ‘different’ from the societal norms we have created.

When did we, as a society, become so ignorant to the facts and truth? When did we become so morally wrong? When did we stop trusting each other?

I cannot answer a single question above. But with so much hate speech spewing from the mouths of my fellow citizens, I choose love and I will not accept the hate as a ‘new normal.’ This is not the America I know and love. These are not the values America was built on.

We are more than this. Let’s actually make America great again, but with love.