By Elizabeth Taillon, Liberal Studies Major

With the 2016 United States Presidential Election coming up quickly, the right and left have

begun their dirty battle for leadership in one of the most socially unstable times in

recent American history. Despite his unusual tactics and shameless racism, Donald

Trump, conservative Republican, is gaining attention and support at an alarming rate, appealing

in particular to older, white, less educated citizens.

Considering Trump’s experience, a four-times-bankrupt real estate mogul and former

reality television star, it’s no wonder that his campaign is gaining attention in our

entertainment-obsessed nation despite the doubts toward the actual possibility of

Trump’s presidential victory. With civil unrest disrupting livelihood on almost every

continent, America’s ignorance-is-bliss-attitude is currently casting a dangerous shadow on the

reality of our world with Trump carrying the torch; a similar shadow which was cast upon

Germany in a time of economic collapse. It is disturbing to see the many striking similarities

between the rise of Donald Trump, Republican US candidate, and Adolf Hitler, the

German dictator who was responsible for one of the largest genocides throughout history.

Adolf Hitler’s compelling speeches gave hope for opportunity to the lower middle class,

the unemployed, and young people. With the majority of the population being so vulnerable

and powerless in a post-war state, financially suffering citizens became an easy target to Hitler’s

ideals of eugenics, nationalism, and mass-extinction. Of the people who he claimed produced

strain on German society and the well-being of its citizens, Jews, Poles, immigrants, disabled

people, and homosexuals – among other minority groups – were blamed for contaminating the

German race.

Eventually, Hitler was able to gain power through his effective use of scare tactics as

he slowly stripped away the rights of non-Aryan citizens as well as those who dared to oppose

him. However, it was through gentler tactics that Adolf Hitler was able to initially win the

general public and the German government’s support, providing him with the

opportunity for power that he used to violently exterminate an estimated 11 million people

during WWII. Hitler obviously did not give a detailed description of his evil plans during his

election; instead, he used persuasive speech tactics to appeal to vulnerable and

powerless citizens who could be easily controlled.

What’s frightening is that Trump, undoubtedly among the wealthiest in our

nation, blames our country’s entire economic lament on immigrants by captivating poor and

gullible citizens with reckless blame tactics. There is no compelling evidence that immigrants

are destroying our country any more than the leaders are; Trump’s claims are based upon

misleading statistics and staunch racism. The 57% of Republican support in favor of Trump, who

has confirmed that he keeps a book of Hitler’s speeches next to his bedside, proves that it

is unbelievably easy to blame and target a disadvantaged minority group to sell hope in the

form of hatred to lower class citizens.

Like Adolf Hitler, Donald Trump captivates his targeted supporters by relieving taxes

from those in the lowest tax bracket, which puts money back into the pockets

of Americans who make less than $25,000 per year. But in addition to this bribe, Trump has

woven his hatred of immigrants deeply into his politics, calling for all immigrants to be sent

back to their countries along with children of immigrants, ending birthright citizenship and

completely negating the Constitution. Trump threatens to defund any US “Sanctuary

Cities” (like Portland and South Portland) that would continue to provide programs for

immigrants seeking refuge from the many areas of the world that are being ravaged by war,

echoing the authoritarian tactics of the Nazi regime against those who express opposition.

Though most people would be quick to dismiss the comparison between Donald

Trump and Adolf Hitler, it is important to consider the terrible consequences of government

supported racism.

Though post WWI and WWII Germany was indeed a much different place

than present-day America, the blaming of a particular minority for all the problems of a nation is

again being used to pave the way for power. It is crucial that the world never forgets the

consequences of the Holocaust and the irreparable damage that it caused by hate disguised as

hope. If America elects Donald Trump as President, racism and hatred would be woven into the

laws of our government, irreversibly compromising the lives of millions of immigrants in the

name of power, and making our world more vulnerable to the horrors of widespread racism.