I have high functioning autism (formerly known as Asperger’s Syndrome) and anxiety. My strong sense of injustice is furious that he was elected president after every abusive, bullying thing he said and did during his campaign. Trump belittled not only people with disabilities, but also women, people of different faiths, immigrants, people of color, poor people, and non heterosexual people. As not only an autistic woman with anxiety but also as an unemployed asexual woman who has no interest in fitting into the feminine gender box or marrying and settling down to be a stay at home mother, I fit into several of those categories. I also have many friends and family members who also fit into those categories, and I am nothing if not loyal to those I care about. I also find the idea of a Trump presidency terrifying. How will people in minority groups find jobs if a Trump presidency allows employers to discriminate against them during the hiring process? How will unemployed and underemployed people survive if Trump abolishes programs that help them afford things like food and health care? Not only that, but some of the things he talks about implementing even I know would destroy the economy. That’s why I join in this march: for myself, the people I care about, and those like us. For everyone has the right to live their lives in the way they find most fulfilling as long as they don’t hurt others. For me and many of my loved ones, if Donald Trump follows through on what he said he’d do and continues to act the way he did during his campaign, his presidency could mean having that right taken away from us. And that is something I will do everything I can to keep from happening.

Rachel was diagnosed with high functioning autism when she was ten, anxiety when she was twelve, received her Bachelor’s in Computer Science when she was twenty two and her Master’s in Library Science in May of the past year. She enjoys web site design, database management, programming in Java, and volunteering at local libraries. Volunteering at a local public library was how she came to be inspired to pursue her Master’s degree. She is currently seeking employment in an entry level cataloging or other technical services position at either an academic or a public library.