I understand why so many people would be apathetic to politics, want to ignore current events, and believe that their vote doesn’t matter. I don’t agree with it, but I get why people turn away from it. As someone who has been feeling things a lot more deeply in the last three years, I feel more stress when reading the news, when I hear of places in the Middle East being bombed, innocent people trying to find new homes in countries that don’t want them, including my own home country. I am angered by the corruption in politics, as completely exaggerated in House of Cards (obviously fiction, but I’m sure a lot of the stupid negotiations for votes on certain bills and others have to do with politicians just wanting to keep their seats in the next election), and made painfully real in the leaks of the Democrats led by DWS pitting the Democratic party against Bernie Sanders in favor of Hillary Clinton. As a registered Democrat, I am frustrated, upset, and rightly embarrassed by it.

But I still think as people who are citizens and/or residents of this nation, we have a duty to inform ourselves of the facts, of what’s really happening in today’s world so that we can contribute to making the world the place we want it to be, a world in which we would be happy to raise children and leave behind for future generations. We have a duty to not only be informed, but vote and make our voices heard. And when I sometimes get so mad by the corruption and all the violence, racism, and sexism that still persist in the world that I want to stop reading the news, I am quickly reminded that there’s a reason we do all this. And I hear speeches like this one by Michelle Obama that inspire me and make me feel strength and purpose, and fill my eyes with tears because of the passion she exudes. She makes evident her love for this country and for the people of this nation and the world. I honestly have never felt any other political speech more deeply than the ones given by Michelle Obama. The first one was her speech at the Democratic National Convention this past July, and now, it’s this one in Manchester this past Monday. She’s an inspiration, similar to how I felt when I used to hear Hillary Clinton give speeches as First Lady back in the 1990s. I barely knew anything about politics back then, but I knew that Hillary was a strong, fierce woman, someone who was unprecedented in her actions and passion as FLOTUS. We need strong, stubborn, fierce women in leadership positions who have a “take no bullshit” attitude. I’m looking forward to seeing what Michelle Obama does after she leaves the White House with Barack Obama, and I’m also still hoping that America won’t prove to be as stupid as Bill Maher and Michael Moore keep saying, and will vote against the pro-sexual assault orange man.