I was in Senegal, West Africa when Obama got inaugurated for the first time. There was a sense of excitement and joy wherever I traveled for that next year. As an expat living overseas I had been saying I was Canadian when people asked. It was the safe thing to do, especially in Muslim countries as Bush and America didn’t have the best name during those years.

After 2009 I went back to telling people I was American while I was traveling. Senegal, France, Malaysia, Morocco. I got smiles. I got “Obama!” said to me many times with high fives. I got the feeling like people didn’t hate Americans as much as they used to.

Now I must tell you that I know absolutely nothing about politics. I’m neither republican or democrat. I’m just here to share a view as an outsider. I’ve spent very little time living in the United States over the past 10 years, but that doesn’t change the fact that I am still affected. Because once again the face of a nation will change. And the new face has said some bad, bad things.

But there’s still hope. Click the here and read. Then turn off your computer. Turn off your phone. Turn off your TV. Get out amongst it and do what youth do.—Nate Lawrence