The Union-Tribune Editorial Board Fails to be Constructive

Donald Trump is the president-elect and I am gravely disappointed in San Diego’s paper of record, The Union-Tribune.

The San Diego Union-Tribune’s recent editorial entitled “Congratulations, President Donald Trump. Time to look beyond the election” is an affront to both to San Diego and more specifically, the diverse community that calls San Diego home.

Their editorial in response to the election result calls for us to not look at the result of this election as “a black eye for democracy” because “that is simply not constructive.”

As a newspaper editorial board, not only should it be ashamed, but they should question why exactly they find their own opinion “constructive.” I refuse to stand by when our president-elect declares nonchalantly that is he going to work to undo all the progress that President Obama has made for underrepresented groups and enact policy like canceling all federal funding to sanctuary cities.” We certainly do not sit by and placate racism and intolerance. Do they?

The Tribune’s Editorial Board is not offering constructive advice for how we should move on — they are asking us to be complacent.

What they describe as hope, I assure you, is complacency. Where they call for our leaders to step up, it’s evident that our leaders have already missed the opportunity. The “cultural rift as severe as the one that buffeted the 1960s” that they describe is not tomorrow, but now.

The Tribune Editorial Board choose to quote Tocqueville, so I’d like to respond with Orwell: “Threats to freedom of speech, writing and action, though often trivial in isolation, are cumulative in their effect and, unless checked, lead to a general disrespect for the rights of the citizen.”

Failure to understand the hardships we will face in the coming months and an inability to acknowledge the dire situation actually contribute to the very real threat Donald Trump poses to the American system. If you aim to publish an editorial, please consider thinking about the effect your words have on the very people you aim to serve: your readers.

The Tribune and any other paper that declares the way forward as clear should reconsider why they think their opinion matters. The future is not theirs; it is ours. The country is not just for privileged folks who can act like life simply “goes on,” because this election is going to have real consequences on the lives of too many Americans.

We cannot look beyond the election, because tomorrow might be a day in which our friends lose their ability to receive healthcare or work in this country.

The Union-Tribune’s opinion is highly irrelevant to those who are going to suffer the consequences of this election, its editorial was irresponsible to publish, and it has said enough.

Gabriel Schneider is the Editor-in-Chief at the Triton. He can be reached at editor@triton.news