I know that the New Year’s resolution is supposed to be cheerful, happy, uplifting, hopeful … But at this point, I can’t say any of these things of those things. 2016 was a tough political year for many. There was Brexit, the rise of Trump, the travesty in Syria, instability in Turkey and, perhaps most worryingly, the sight of the post-WWII global order that had been so delicately crafted seemingly just shattering into pieces before our very eyes. It’s gotten so bad that John McCain, of all people, is warning us about the “unraveling” of Western civilization.

And, the worst part is, all of these problems that defined 2016 are long-term problems. They are not going away in 2017 – in fact, they’re just getting started. As the new year commences, we here in America will witness the inauguration of a man poised to violate the Constitution – a document for which he has shown flagrant disregard – within days (if not hours) of that inauguration. And he will be advised by a cabinet already so mired in controversy and conflicts of interest that it’s making the Bush administration look, in retrospect, like a hippie commune.

And I have no delusions of what my – or anyone else’s – future will look like in this America. I say this as women stand to lose their right to their body as the GOP has already pledged to cut Planned Parenthood; people of color stand to lose their equal standing and equal personhood as white supremacists ascend to important cabinet posts; the freedom of religion stands to be all but shredded as Trump continues to stand by his promise for a Muslim registry and poor people stand to lose the meager remnants of the welfare state (e.g. Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps) that keeps them from literally starving to death on the street.

And this grim situation has, on multiple occasions, made me want to quit – stop paying attention to politics, stop writing, unsubscribe from news alerts. I’ve cursed myself for being so engrossed in politics that even when it causes me mostly grief and anger, I cannot even extricate myself from it. But despite these moments of weakness, I know capitulation is not an option for anyone who finds themselves opposed to the policies of this incoming administration or disturbed by the increasing chaos of our world.

When The Daily Show returned on air for the first time since the 9/11 attacks, Jon Stewart delivered a tear-filled monologue, telling his audience why he “grieves, but does not despair.” And one particular thing he says transcends the circumstances:

“Any fool can blow something up. Any fool can destroy. But to see these guys, these … people from all over the country, rebuilding – that’s extraordinary. And that’s why we have already won – they can’t – it’s light, it’s democracy. They can’t shut that down.”

The new administration, in my eyes, is here to destroy. They are here to destroy the values that I – and, I know, a great number of my fellow Americans – hold dear: tolerance and inclusiveness – of people being judged not by the color of their skin but the content of their character; freedom and the pursuit of happiness – to have freedom over what you say, what you do, what you study, who you love; compassion – the idea that we care for and respect our brothers and sisters and that wherever that star-spangled banner flies proudly in the wind, we take care of our own …

In a more innocent time, I used to think that these are unshakeable American values that would never die. I was naive and wrong. These values are at risk, and they are on the brink of destruction. And the only option we have is to not despair. The only option we have is to fight back.

And this isn’t about saving Obamacare or getting a better budget deal – this fight transcends politics, it’s about America’s heart and soul. When I hear the word America, what I don’t want to think of is the ghost-white robes of the Ku Klux Klan, which I’ve already seen entirely too much.

When I hear the word America, I want to think of the words of Dr. King, or of the room of people I was naturalized with, waving their American flags as citizens for the very first time, or of that poem on the base of the Statue of Liberty. That’s the America I know and love, and that’s the America all of us need to stand up and fight for in this new year. And that’s my New Year’s resolution: to fight for that America to the best of my ability.

And if I get a wish, too, it’d just be that I wish we’ll be all right.

 

Contact Terence Zhao at zhaoy ‘at’ stanford.edu.