Michelle Obama has called on Americans to use the November 3 election to stand up to “fear, division, and chaos” as well as finding leadership on the Coronavirus pandemic and social and racial issues.

In a 24-minute video released on Monday, Obama urged people to vote for Joe Biden. She praised his aptitude and responsibility, in comparison with a Donald Trump who is “not up to the job”.

The former First Lady noted that the Trump Presidency has been “a constant drumbeat of fear, division, and chaos that’s threatening to spiral out of control”.

She said of Trump’s approach to Coronavirus: “In the greatest crisis of our lifetimes, he doubled-down on division and resentment, railed against measures that could have mitigated the damage.”

Seven months later, he still doesn’t have a plan for this virus. Seven months later, he still won’t wear a mask consistently and encourage others to do the same. Instead, he continues to gaslight the American people by acting like this pandemic is not a real threat.

In August, virtually addressing the Democratic National Convention, Obama called for “going high” as “the only thing that works” against hatred. And on Monday, she again spoke passionately about the campaign for racial justice:

I want everyone who is still undecided to think about all those folks like me and my ancestors. The millions of folks who look like me and fought and died and toiled as slaves and soldiers and labourers to help build this country. Racism, fear, division, these are powerful weapons. And they can destroy this nation if we don’t deal with them head on.

She said Trump and his allies were “stoking fears about Black and brown Americans” to “distract from his breathtaking failures by giving folks someone to blame other than them….[It is] morally wrong, and yes, it is racist. But that doesn’t mean it won’t work.”

Obama upheld the positive alternative of Biden, “guided by values and principles that mirror ones that most Americans can recognize”: “[He is] a leader who has the character and the experience to put an end to this chaos…a good man who understands the struggles of everyday folks”.

If you think things cannot possibly get worse, trust me, they can; and they will if we don’t make a change in this election. Search your hearts, and your conscience, and then vote for Joe Biden like your lives depend on it.