To Be An American On This 4th Of July.
I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart,
I am the Negro bearing slavery's scars.
I am the red man driven from the land,
I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek--
And finding only the same old stupid plan
Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.
-Langston Hughes, "Let America Be America Again"
As an American, I am not in a very celebratory mood today. I love my country and I love its people, but like the men who signed our Declaration of Independence on this day 241 years ago, I have my grievances. And I do not think I am alone.
As Americans, we do not participate in the affairs of our nation. We do not vote. In this past Presidential Election, 55.4% of eligible voters voted. In 2012, that number was 60%, and in 2008, that number was 63.7%. If you think about it, in 2016, 38% of the entire population decided who will preside not just over them, but also over the other 62% of the entire population. Granted, if every eligible voter voted, that would number out to 70% of the entire population, but that remaining 30% are children and convicted felons. (Sidebar: we ought to allow convicted felons to vote, but that's another conversation). My question though is why should 2 people decide for the other 3?
As Americans, we are hypocritical about questioning things. We are susceptible to conspiracy theories and will allow someone like Alex Jones and his Infowars to have White House press credentials, but if someone blocks a freeway, all of sudden they're thugs? Not to compare protestors to conspiracy theorists, but protestors are questioning the system we live in. Furthermore, they're taking the extra step to do something about it. They're trying to change a system that they do not think is acceptable. Conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones rant and rave, peddle idiotic ideas based on nothing, share memes, and wear tin foil on their heads - and on the occasion that they do something besides that, they bomb buildings and shoot people to death.
If Americans really want to change the system, they need to stop believing in stupidity and come join a protest. There are protests for all sorts of things, no matter your political beliefs. Don't like Abortion? I'm sure there's a protest at your local Planned Parenthood. Don't like corporations dumping toxic pollutants into the environment? Talk to Greenpeace. They organize protests all over the place. But even beyond joining a protest, call your congressman or senator. Get involved in your local schoolboard. Heck, run for political office! And getting back to my first point: vote!
It's crazy, but actions, like blocking a freeway, or holding a sit in, or even making a simple phone call to your congressman, make a huge difference. How do you think we managed to change labor laws to prevent children under 14 from legally working in coal mines and horrid sweatshops? How do you think we have the minimum wage, social security, disability insurance, and unemployment insurance? In case the answer isn't obvious, its a combination of all of those things: people protesting, calling their politicians, and going on strike.
How do you think we got rid of legal segregation and passed laws protecting and promoting civil rights? How do you think we got civil rights for LGBT people? How do you think we got some basic protections for the environment? How do you think we got rid of the British from the United States of America, beginning on this day 241 years ago?
The answer should be obvious by now. We did the things that needed to be done. We protested.
Getting to my next point, Americans also need to stop fetishizing individualism. We need to stop constantly thinking of ourselves and what will benefit us first. I'm not saying we need to conform and give up our individual personalities, nor am I advocating that we should only think as a collective. That would be ludicious. Instead, we need to stop putting ourselves almost absolutely above everyone else. In a world where every person does this, we will always have inequailty. We will always have the haves and the have-nots. And only a few will succeed in a race of the survival of the fittest. We are not animals! We are human beings, and we ought to like we are human beings; otherwise, we are no different from the bears and mountain lions that inhabit our mountains, nor different than the sharks that dwell in our oceans!
For example, we need to put our selfish idea that we don't need health insurance because we're healthy into the trash! It's a big reason why the Affordable Care Act hasn't reached its full potential. It's why we still have 28.5 million people who lack health insurance (although we've also managed to insure another 17 million people who previously didn't have insurance). Perhaps if we could take our "individuality" and shove it, every single one of us would have affordable health insurance.
Same goes for things like free college education, improved infrastructure, tough environmental regulations, mandatory voting, and limited income inequality. Stop putting yourself absolutely first! Think of how your actions affect others. I wouldn't mind paying more in taxes if it means everyone gets to go to a Doctor when they need to, if it means everyone who wants to can further their education, and if it means that we are more equal now than ever before. These are worthy goals and they can be achieved if we can put our selfish ambitions aside.
This is my Declaration of Independence. I'm declaring independence in the name of sanity and decency and selflessness. I'm declaring independence from the fetish that is absolute individualism, the prevalence of ignorance and stupidity in our political culture, and the lack of civic duty that stains our country.
Remember those fateful words that Thomas Jefferson authored: 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, chief among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Let the spirit of Jefferson guide us down this righteous path.
Signed,
Ocean Eale.
Hawaii and Oregon.
I am the Negro bearing slavery's scars.
I am the red man driven from the land,
I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek--
And finding only the same old stupid plan
Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.
-Langston Hughes, "Let America Be America Again"
As an American, I am not in a very celebratory mood today. I love my country and I love its people, but like the men who signed our Declaration of Independence on this day 241 years ago, I have my grievances. And I do not think I am alone.
As Americans, we do not participate in the affairs of our nation. We do not vote. In this past Presidential Election, 55.4% of eligible voters voted. In 2012, that number was 60%, and in 2008, that number was 63.7%. If you think about it, in 2016, 38% of the entire population decided who will preside not just over them, but also over the other 62% of the entire population. Granted, if every eligible voter voted, that would number out to 70% of the entire population, but that remaining 30% are children and convicted felons. (Sidebar: we ought to allow convicted felons to vote, but that's another conversation). My question though is why should 2 people decide for the other 3?
As Americans, we are hypocritical about questioning things. We are susceptible to conspiracy theories and will allow someone like Alex Jones and his Infowars to have White House press credentials, but if someone blocks a freeway, all of sudden they're thugs? Not to compare protestors to conspiracy theorists, but protestors are questioning the system we live in. Furthermore, they're taking the extra step to do something about it. They're trying to change a system that they do not think is acceptable. Conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones rant and rave, peddle idiotic ideas based on nothing, share memes, and wear tin foil on their heads - and on the occasion that they do something besides that, they bomb buildings and shoot people to death.
If Americans really want to change the system, they need to stop believing in stupidity and come join a protest. There are protests for all sorts of things, no matter your political beliefs. Don't like Abortion? I'm sure there's a protest at your local Planned Parenthood. Don't like corporations dumping toxic pollutants into the environment? Talk to Greenpeace. They organize protests all over the place. But even beyond joining a protest, call your congressman or senator. Get involved in your local schoolboard. Heck, run for political office! And getting back to my first point: vote!
It's crazy, but actions, like blocking a freeway, or holding a sit in, or even making a simple phone call to your congressman, make a huge difference. How do you think we managed to change labor laws to prevent children under 14 from legally working in coal mines and horrid sweatshops? How do you think we have the minimum wage, social security, disability insurance, and unemployment insurance? In case the answer isn't obvious, its a combination of all of those things: people protesting, calling their politicians, and going on strike.
How do you think we got rid of legal segregation and passed laws protecting and promoting civil rights? How do you think we got civil rights for LGBT people? How do you think we got some basic protections for the environment? How do you think we got rid of the British from the United States of America, beginning on this day 241 years ago?
The answer should be obvious by now. We did the things that needed to be done. We protested.
Getting to my next point, Americans also need to stop fetishizing individualism. We need to stop constantly thinking of ourselves and what will benefit us first. I'm not saying we need to conform and give up our individual personalities, nor am I advocating that we should only think as a collective. That would be ludicious. Instead, we need to stop putting ourselves almost absolutely above everyone else. In a world where every person does this, we will always have inequailty. We will always have the haves and the have-nots. And only a few will succeed in a race of the survival of the fittest. We are not animals! We are human beings, and we ought to like we are human beings; otherwise, we are no different from the bears and mountain lions that inhabit our mountains, nor different than the sharks that dwell in our oceans!
For example, we need to put our selfish idea that we don't need health insurance because we're healthy into the trash! It's a big reason why the Affordable Care Act hasn't reached its full potential. It's why we still have 28.5 million people who lack health insurance (although we've also managed to insure another 17 million people who previously didn't have insurance). Perhaps if we could take our "individuality" and shove it, every single one of us would have affordable health insurance.
Same goes for things like free college education, improved infrastructure, tough environmental regulations, mandatory voting, and limited income inequality. Stop putting yourself absolutely first! Think of how your actions affect others. I wouldn't mind paying more in taxes if it means everyone gets to go to a Doctor when they need to, if it means everyone who wants to can further their education, and if it means that we are more equal now than ever before. These are worthy goals and they can be achieved if we can put our selfish ambitions aside.
This is my Declaration of Independence. I'm declaring independence in the name of sanity and decency and selflessness. I'm declaring independence from the fetish that is absolute individualism, the prevalence of ignorance and stupidity in our political culture, and the lack of civic duty that stains our country.
Remember those fateful words that Thomas Jefferson authored: 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, chief among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Let the spirit of Jefferson guide us down this righteous path.
Signed,
Ocean Eale.
Hawaii and Oregon.
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