THOUGHTS ON PATRIOTISM: A PIECE OF THE WAY FORWARD
I have had a few people ask me to speak on what I think about our recent presidential election. I resisted any urge to speak immediately, however. I wanted to give myself some time to gather my thoughts and feelings and reflect, largely apart from what other people think. I am finding most people’s opinions strong and unyielding, and a lack of openness to real dialogue. Looking around social media, most people who ARE speaking are largely critical with in the way of anything positive or meaningful. I don’t have all the answers either. But it’s easy to be negative. It’s much harder to be a part of the solution.
So here are my thoughts: I think in a moment like this, we need to remember our history. For some of us, that will mean learning the history we have never been properly taught. And no, I don’t mean just what is taught in any school. Schools are just as political as any capitol in how decisions are made around what gets taught and what doesn’t. Even with all of my education, I am STILL learning about American history myself.
I want to tell the rest of my point through a coincidental story: after I spent time at home with my then-newborn grandson, I was waiting at the local airport to fly home. As fate would have it, there were delays. Many people were stuck in that little airport waiting for the next connecting flight. I had been there a while, so I had my own seat. But this nondescript white man came along and looked around dejectedly for a seat. He asked me if he could sit with me, which I was glad to oblige. He had a kind spirit. When he sat down, I noticed he was holding this book, the same one whose cover I included with this post. He saw my curiosity and then proceeded to tell me that he had just come from a military base in Upstate New York where it was NAMED after her!
He definitely had my attention then! He told me that she was many things, but during the Civil War she was a bit of a spy. She got caught by the Confederacy. But he told me she was such a pain in the butt to the Confederate jailers that they released her and demanded she go back North! She did, and soon after returned to continue to be a thorn in their side until the South was brought to its knees in defeat. Her name was Dr. Mary Walker. She is an example of a true patriot, to me. It took me some time to write this because I did not have pen and paper when I met her descendant. It took me some time to find her name.
When we think of patriots, we often think of flag-waving rah-rah American people who want nothing but a Christian God, nothing but white people in this country, and a list of other unsettling things. But the problem is not completely those people. Those of us who are not like them but just as loving of our country do not speak up and witness to a different vision of national pride that is inclusive. To get there we need to know who our heroes and heroines are who have ALWAYS withstood the tides of ignorance, hatred and exclusivity. We need to remember that these patriots have always been here, and we have their stories to inspire us and give us wisdom. Many Americans do not know this history aside from possibly John Brown and Harriet Tubman. They are significant, but there are others.
Looking at these patriots and their stories also reminds me to be realistic. It has never been the case in America that there was a massive movement of American conscience to move the needle in a good way on any social movement. Most movements have happened through a small but dedicated group of people building coalitions outside of their interest group, and then waiting for the right moment to strike while the iron was hot. This was the genius of the Civil Rights movement. Civil Rights succeeded because of community organizing and timely political strikes.
This kind of patriotic courage was established at the start of our country. The trick for us is to figure out how to get there. Part of the answer, for me, is to find out who our heroes were and are. They are there; let’s find them together!
