Patriotism and Freedom: Definitions, Pt. 1

The association that I have formed with a group of Moroccans held its first event on July 4th; the event was a look at the history of Independence Day and our continuous relationship with Morocco. Morocco, being the first country to recognize America as a sovereign nation, is an especially important relationship that America has, due to it being an Islamic state, it being close to Europe, and its unique position as a syncretic country that combines the cultures of Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. As I studied the history of Independence Day, and our subsequent relationship with Morocco, I began to ask myself what it meant to be proud of one's country, and what it meant to obtain freedom. I wrote an article exactly one year ago about about being a liberal patriot, and I feel that it defines what I believe to be the American culture, but I didn't expand on how I actually define patriotism or freedom.

I have never been the type of person to be "proud" of a America just because I was born there, I need to know the why. From what I have always seen, most Americans show their patriotism during Independence Day parades, waving plastic American flags that were made in China while military personnel walk by. To many people, making any criticism of America, and even more so its military, is equivalent to treason, and an almost hanging offense. But do we really appreciate our veterans? According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans,

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) states the nation’s homeless veterans are predominantly male, with roughly five percent being female. The majority of them are single; come from urban areas; and suffer from mental illness, alcohol and/or substance abuse, or co-occurring disorders. About one-third of the adult homeless population are veterans...

VA estimates that 107,000 veterans are homeless on any given night. Over the course of a year, approximately twice that many experience homelessness. Only eight percent of the general population can claim veteran status, but nearly one-fifth of the homeless population are veterans.

With numbers like these, one would think that any self-respecting country would devote resources to combating this social ill; after all, our veterans sacrificed their lives, limbs, and mental stability just so we could wave our flags. But with every budget debate that has occurred, rather than using our wealth to help those who have made these ultimate sacrifices, we instead sacrifice them so that we can keep our taxes low. When given a choice, social services have always been the first so-called "entitlements" to go - mental health facilities, substance abuse programs, housing programs for the poor - all of these programs that actually help these veterans are instead sacrificed in support of trickle down economics, the belief that the fewer taxes rich people pay, the more money trickles down to the poorest of Americans. I cannot fathom how anybody can claim to be patriotic only to support politicians who would rather let veterans die on the streets rather than establish a decent living wage, housing, and health programs to ensure that they are treated with the dignity and respect that they deserve.

In international media, most of the articles revolving around American budget debates focus on the fact that so many people are so willing to cut services with the neediest among us. Even when I do force myself to read American media, the same outcome is evident. Most people refer to these programs as "entitlements", as if supporting the least among us is a luxury, not a necessity. From this, I have to conclude that Americans aren't proud of America as a single entity, but are instead proud of themselves for being American. As I stated in a previous blog, America is unique among other countries. Most countries are defined by a common ancestry, religion, race, or some other physical attribute, but America is unique in that what unites Americans is not a physical or religious trait, but an ideal. I believe that ideal is found within the Preamble of the United States Constitution:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence,[note 1] promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

And in the Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness

The fact that an ideal, instead of a religion or physical characteristic, is the link that binds us is both positive and negative. It is positive because it means that all human beings in America, whether they are from Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, or South America, whether they are male, female, or transgender, heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual, whether they are Atheist, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, or Muslim, are all endowed with the right to those qualities listed in those two statements. It is negative, however, in the fact that it requires Americans to view each other as equals. Sometimes, this can be difficult. It can be difficult for people to see someone who is physically different from him or her to view the other as equal. Racism, sexism, xenophobia, and other traits that serve to separate us from one another are bred into us from an early age. It is biological, and to fight it requires us to fight very dark, very deep-seated negative qualities that reside within us. Many people, I have noticed, cannot fight those dark impulses within them, and so feel no remorse by the fact that there are fellow citizens who experience hardships because they do not feel a connection to them. How many speeches have we heard in America that talk about so-called "Real America", as if there are people in America who don't deserve to call themselves Americans. The truth of the matter is that we are connected. A country is only as strong as its weakest member. We are only as successful as our most downtrodden of citizens. We are only as good of a country as the one who is least cared for. We are in this together. The ability to recognize our unity is what differentiates a country from a simple collection of people.

Living in Morocco, I have noticed a sense of community. I feel that it is made easier due to the physical and religious aspects that they share. Again, it is easier to feel a connection to someone when they share physical and religious characteristics. America is the most religiously, ethnically, and physically diverse country. That doesn't negate the fact that we are all still connected by an ideal that transcends petty physical and religious differences. Americans used to be taught that we are better than that, that we are capable of looking past our superficial differences and seeing, instead, the common qualities that bind us.

Living in a developing country for as long as I have, I am finally able to see this about America. It is this that I hope to bring back to America. I am patriotic. I am proud to be an American, but I am proud of that because I want to strive to see the commonalities that all Americans share. It doesn't matter if you can trace your lineage back to the Mayflower, or if you are a first-generation immigrant. None of these physical characteristics matter. That is the difference that I see. Many people who claim the mantle of patriotism while supporting cuts to the social services for the least of their brethren are not proud of the greatness of America - they are proud only of the greatness of themselves.