In the wake of protests and growing tensions after Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election, CNN asked Iyanla Vanzant to help fix America and speak to those who are “anxious or fearful” because of the political climate.
“My first thing would be: breath,” Vanzant said. “You know, really, take some deep breaths. And fear not. There is nothing to fear.”
She then continued, speaking to CNN’s Don Lemon: “You know, Don, when I break down on the side of the road, my first call is to AAA because I know they’re gonna break me help. So, I want to give three ‘A’s that I believe will support us.”
She then outlined the plan: acknowledgement, acceptance, action.
.@IyanlaVanzant on post-election tension: “Breathe … there’s nothing to fear” https://t.co/u52Ea97Ny8 https://t.co/G4bDp2fSHq
— CNN Tonight (@CNNTonight) November 15, 2016
“We have to acknowledge, Don, that this didn’t happen to us. It didn’t fall out of the sky…. We created this in so many ways,” she said.
She drew attention to the fact that “we” created this, saying, “We’ve got to eliminate the ‘against-ness… and acknowledge how we created this. We have to acknowledge that half the people… who voted think the way this candidate spoke.”
“They think that,” she added. “And on some levels, we knew it. We knew it, but we wouldn’t discuss it, because in many ways, we have normalized disrespect, we have normalized vile-speaking.”
In speaking of acceptance, Vanzant spoke to the stages of grief, which ends with acceptance.
She ended by summing it up: “Acknowledge our responsibility, we have to accept what happened… Action, hold people accountable, so that our seated elected officials, we’ve got to hold them accountable.”
.@IyanlaVanzant to @DonLemon: “Change is always preceded by chaos” https://t.co/u52Ea8Qc9y https://t.co/3lVLhEnkrZ
— CNN Tonight (@CNNTonight) November 15, 2016