George Takei urges Trump voters not to see the election 'as a license to hate'


George Takei, the actor turned social activist best known for his role on the hit show Star Trek: The Original Series, wrote Tuesday in The Daily Beast about the importance of not succumbing to fear in the wake of Donald Trump's presidential victory. Takei wrote of the Japanese principle of "gaman," which means "to endure, with dignity and fortitude," as he likened his personal experience in Japanese internment camps in the 1940s to the fear some Americans may feel in the face of the coming Trump administration.
"We had legitimate fear of angry mobs," Takei wrote, "but amidst all the unfounded hate and suspicion of us, there were also many good Americans who came to our aid." Takei refers to the people who tended to the homes of their neighbors who had been interned and mentions the "lawyers who filed suits on our behalf and saved tens of thousands of us, including my own mother, from being deported," listing off various ordinary people who went beyond their duties to help their peers in need. Takei then urges Americans who supported Trump to understand that the fear felt by those who opposed him originates from a place of hope and patriotism, and encourages Trump supporters to take the opportunity they have to "blunt the harshest elements of [Trump's] candidacy and now soon his presidency":
The business of governing is a serious one, and if they wish to see their candidate succeed, they can and should decry neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and other terror groups who hope to capitalize on fear and division and are a real impediment to their candidate's legitimacy. [George Takei, via The Daily Beast]
Trump supporters must "stand up to any who would take their candidate's election as a license to hate," Takei urges. Read the full essay at The Daily Beast.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Ricky Soberano is the social media editor at TheWeek.com. Her writing has appeared in Complex, Nylon, Gothamist, Maxim, and others. Previously she was the culture editor for The Stony Brook Press and contributing editor for The Odyssey. She has a B.A. in multidisciplinary studies in journalism and dance from Stony Brook University and an A.S. in dance from Queensborough Community College. She's lived in Brooklyn her whole life, eats too much ramen, and freelance models, and she enjoys writing about the undiscovered and underreported within the sphere of culture. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Scientists invent a solid carbon-negative building material
Under the radar Building CO2 into the buildings
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Scottish hospitality shines at these 7 hotels
The Week Recommends Sleep well at these lovely inns across Scotland
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: April 1, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Trump 'not joking' about unconstitutional 3rd term
Speed Read The president seems to be serious about seeking a third term in 2028
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
Supreme Court upholds 'ghost gun' restrictions
Speed Read Ghost guns can be regulated like other firearms
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump sets 25% tariffs on auto imports
Speed Read The White House says the move will increase domestic manufacturing. But the steep import taxes could also harm the US auto industry.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump allies urge White House to admit chat blunder
Speed Read Even pro-Trump figures are criticizing The White House's handling of the Signal scandal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Waltz takes blame for texts amid calls for Hegseth ouster
Speed Read Democrats are calling for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and national security adviser Michael Waltz to step down
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Judge: Nazis treated better than Trump deportees
speed read U.S. District Judge James Boasberg reaffirmed his order barring President Donald Trump from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US officials share war plans with journalist in group chat
Speed Read Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a Signal conversation about striking Yemen
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published