The Anti-Establishment Establishment

In this recent election cycle, one ideal has made a deep gash in modern politics. It has been a resounding battle cry, a beacon of hope for those who are sick and tired of no change. This is the year of the anti-establishment (for both Exonians and Americans), and it’s the ideal and change that we all need.

Anti-establishment individuals and groups have been around for a while. A long while. In essence, with every establishment comes an anti-establishment to counterbalance it. And those who subscribe to the philosophy of anti-establishmentarianism are, in a sense, brave to voice their contrarian opinions. It is difficult to go against the current, to speak your mind regardless of what the outcome may be. Basically, it takes guts to voluntarily be the odd one out.

Even though I have much respect and admiration for those who genuinely voice unpopular opinions, I’ve found that sometimes those who strive to be “against the system” can take it too far. Many I know who are opposed to the established society can be remarkably rude and insensitive; they feel that they can insult, provoke and offend people without being ridiculed, scorned at or ignored. To put this into context: It is one thing to suggest something about border control and maintenance; it is completely another to say that we should forcibly remove every undocumented migrant worker out of the country.

A fantastic example of this kind of dual-sided anti-establishmentarianism can be found if you examine two very opposite people—Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump. Take a look at Bernie: He wants the common man to rise up, rip off the shackles that bind him. He wants the diverse and bottled up middle class to explode. He wants universities and colleges around the country to lower their tuition rates, hoping for education equality for all. He is most definitely one of the most anti-establishment Democratic candidates this country has seen in a long, long time. His campaign has helped paved the way for future hopefuls to practice politics like he has.

Now, take a look at Donald. He is also very anti-establishment, but in a different way. He is all for voicing unpopular opinions; that’s the reason why he’s won so many supporters. Almost every person who supports Donald has responded with almost identical responses when questioned about their decision: “He speaks his mind.” “He says exactly what he thinks and doesn’t care about what anyone says,” “he isn’t afraid of stepping on toes and offending others if that’s what he believes.” However, he has used fear tactics and played on the racist and bigoted side of normal Americans.

In the end, people cannot say what they want and expect themselves to be popular. If one voices blatantly racist, homophobic or misogynistic remarks just for the sake of being different, they are not anti-establishment. Instead, they are fake and insincere; worst of all, it means that they have (most ironically) been caught up in the establishment that is “anti-establishmentarianism.”

This doesn’t make any sense though, right? How can there be an anti-establishment establishment? Well, this year, people have proven that there most definitely is one. The anti-establishment establishment is the one that both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders are a part of. It is the establishment that strives for change and the uprooting of the norm. It is as well, for the most part, an establishment that I agree with. Yet people must acknowledge that there is a way to voice your opinion without coming off as ignorant and unkind and until then, I fear that the movement has a long way to go.