Initial reflections from West Virginia

Be honest! Do you also think that Trump's 74 million voters are extremists, stupid, or, as Hillary Clinton put it in 2016, a "basket of deplorables"? Loosely translated, this means "a bunch of sad losers."

I am, of course, aware that it is very difficult to ask this question in Denmark, and that I have probably already offended some of my followers.

But because 88% of us Danes will vote for Harris, there is also a real risk that we will overlook our own bias and our prejudices about Trump's voters.

I sincerely believe that Trump would be a disastrous choice for democracy, the US, and the world. Partly because I disagree with him politically. But I also don't believe that he has the stature and human qualities needed to lead the free world.

However, we do not need to make all 74 million of Trump's voters into worse people because a few of them are extreme. Since the 2016 election, we have built up a narrative in our little pond about those on the other side of the Atlantic who have voted or intend to vote for Trump.

It has been a convenient narrative because it has allowed us to quickly dismiss the radically different choice of president without actually considering why people voted the way they did. The result is a narrative that is caricatured, stigmatizing, and extremely prejudiced.

I have traveled to the United States with dialogue coffee to meet with Trump voters, among others. My trip began in beautiful West Virginia, where Trump received the most votes last time. So it is genuine Trump country.

My column from West Virginia, which I wrote for Berlingske, can be read here: https://www.berlingske.dk/…/ozlem-cekic-er-taget-til…