Behind the mask

Donald Trump's actions should be a reminder to women everywhere. If they haven't figured it out by now, perhaps this new information will catch their attention.

I remember when it was okay to "push a little harder" when a woman said no. And even now, a person I know brushes if off by saying, "It was a different time."

It was.

And it will be again if men like Trump are allowed to continue making remarks about us as if we were things instead of equals.

Hiding behind your religion or political party does not exonerate you unless you are cognitively challenged and don't understand that abortion rights are just topics conservatives drag out for leverage and then after the election is over are carefully stored away for the next election. Or you don't understand that hate is hate whether it is shouted from the podium of a Republican platform, or insidiously hidden in the racist rhetoric of bigots everywhere.

We are heading toward a permanent Halloween if people don't wake up and Trump is the scary thing behind the mask. (And even the mask is terrifying.)