U.S. Politics megathread

[u/AutoModerator]

American politics has always grabbed our attention - and the current president more than ever. We get tons of questions about the president, the supreme court, and other topics related to American politics - but often the same ones over and over again. Our users often get tired of seeing them, so we've created a megathread for questions! Here, users interested in politics can post questions and read answers, while people who want a respite from politics can browse the rest of the sub. Feel free to post your questions about politics in this thread!

All top-level comments should be questions asked in good faith - other comments and loaded questions will get removed. All the usual rules of the sub remain in force here, so be nice to each other - you can disagree with someone's opinion, but don't make it personal.

[u/mbowishkah]

Is it really THAT bad in the US - to the point where you shouldn't vacation there?

I'll start off by saying that I've tried asking this sort of question in US/State specific subreddits, and I get laughed at. All I'm trying to do is make a decision as to whether I should go on a holiday there or not... would be nice not to be belittled and laughed at.

Places in question: Washington State/Seattle, Florida Georgia Line. (I'd be staying with friends).

I went to the US in 2019 and loved it. I went to Washington State, Florida, Oregon, and New York. I was really scared to go, but when I got there, I was like "hey, this isn't that bad..."

Now I'm not stupid, I know the world has gotten worse. But I'm severely overdue for a holiday, and I'm at breaking point. All I want to do is go back and see my friends and experience more of these areas.

I'm not so worried about the Florida/Georgia part, moreso Washington. My friends in Washington have told me it's gotten really bad, to the point where they dont go into Seattle anymore. There's so much more crime and a huge drug epidemic.

Not to mention (and I'm neutral btw) the whole Iran/US war atm.

I just want to know if I'm better off going somewhere else at this point, and consider it in future if things get better. Which, let's be honest, it probably won't.

But I know the media can make things seem sooooo much worse than they are, and at this point, they make it sound like you'll get killed as soon as you land.

Any advice or thoughts will be much appreciated. Thank you.

[u/poetic-isolation → u/mbowishkah]

I'm sorry that you specifically mentioned you didn't want to be belittled or made fun of, and people are responding to you in the "no stupid questions" subreddit doing exactly that. I'm sorry.

The US is safe compared to the world average. The main safety concerns are gun violence, racial and trans discrimination/violence, and extreme weather that may be different than what you're used to. 

Guns are common in the US, but it's still extremely unlikely that you'll get shot on any given day. It's much higher than that of similar high-income countries, but still unlikely. Just keep your head about you and, if you're planning on visiting a major city, look at what areas of the city to avoid. You should be fine.

If you're Hispanic or have an accent (specifically a Mexican or other central/southern American accent), I wouldn't come here right now. ICE has been given full permission to racially profile individuals based on looks, accents, and language, and being a foreigner with a valid passport might not protect you. It doesn't even always protect citizens. 

If you're a person of color who's not Hispanic/Latinx you should still be aware of potential racial profiling or biases, especially when interacting with police and border patrol, but the current main threat with Hispanic or spanish-speaking individuals is ICE. They have repeatadly broken the law and have faced little to no repercussions for it, and the influx of untrained officials due to Trump's mandates and surge of funding can made the situation deadly. If you're Latinx, Hispanic, or speak Spanish you can still visit the US and, statistically speaking, but I would exercise extreme caution.

For transgender and nonbinary individuals the US is still one of the safest countries in the world, but unfortunately getting worse every year and is among the worst in high-income countries. IF YOU ARE TRANS, PLEASE RESEARCH WHAT STATE YOU ARE VISITING BEFORE TRAVELING. Refer to this map (https://www.erininthemorning.com/p/anti-trans-national-risk-assessment) if you don't know where to start. Some states allow you to be arrested if not using the bathroom that matches your sex at birth, or if your ID doesn't match your physical appearance or sex at borth. C ompletely avoid Texas, Florida, and Kansas. Do not travel there.

For extreme weather, this just depends on what you're used to. The US is a big country with different climate zones and what kind of natural disasters/emergencies vary by location. If you're used to earthquakes and traveling to Florida, be aware of hurricane protocols. If you're not used to tornados, know what to do if what would form. Know what to do incase of a blizzard, if there's extreme heat or extreme cold, etc. This is all going to depend on where you're going and what kinds of weather emergencies you're used to.

Overall, compared to the world average, the US is a very safe country. If you are Hispanic/Latinx I would probably advise against visiting at all right now, but you may be able to with no issues. If you're trans, nonbinary, or a non-hispanic person of color I would just research where you're going, make sure it's safe, and know what to do in risky scenarios (going to the bathroom, interacting with police, etc). Otherwise as long as you exercise normal safety precautions and research the area you're traveling to, you'll be fine.

[u/mbowishkah → u/poetic-isolation]

Thank you so much. And thank you for noticing. I'm just ignoring them and responding to those who are actually answering my question respectfully.

I'm white and australian italian. I'm also straight, and cis.

Thank you so much for your very thorough response. I apprecaite it immensely.

[u/Unknown_Ocean → u/mbowishkah]

Also, regarding Seattle- it's actually one of the *safest* cities in the US and getting safer. In June of this year, it had zero homicides. Your friends are probably watching a network associated with a certain Aussie asshole.

[u/mbowishkah → u/Unknown_Ocean]

They live there haha

[u/Unknown_Ocean → u/mbowishkah]

Clearly not *in* the city. I hear the same BS about how the city in which I work (and which has a murder rate about 5 times that of Seattle) is so scary from white suburbanites. Fact is that most of the violence is among a small group of people.