It Is Possible To Love This Country

How can one love a country that has done so much wrong? One that has hatred, disrespect  and exploitation so close to its core? The rot is deep in this country,  wounds left to fester far too long. In a country with so much wrong, should we see what was and is right?

We should never turn away from the lessons we need to learn. (We also should not use the word should; Oh the irony.) This is at the most basic level, that of being in good relation to our own self. We can do good when acting without knowing ourselves, but are more likely to create conflict.

When we love and revere someone it is almost invariably because of how they met the major challenges of their lives. In this way I love this country. I love it in our shared history and culture. The delta blues morphing into Chicago electric blues. Old country music.The blues being reflected back by England in a new style of music. Not only are we one people here, we are one people everywhere.

Dostoevsky is part of my culture, as is all the art and discovery in this world.I love studying the history of cultures around the world and how they play a part in this country. I claim it all. I love it in music from Miles Davis all the way to Bob Dylan. From Public Enemy through to Digable Planets. And so much more. 

I love it in our shared history of the south. (All of it, not glorification but as history.)To Kill A Mockingbird. The Grapes Of Wrath! James Baldwin!! Wow so much! Conan The Barbarian. The Hulk. Marlon Brando. Maya Angelo. Gil Scott Heron. Elvis. Motown. It goes on and on. 

The amazing story of Frederick Douglas and of Abraham Lincoln. All of it is America. The madness of civil war, the war to end all wars until the next world war. Every ethnic group has its own amazing story. We must hear it in order to learn from it. This is our opportunity. To blend these stories and find something unique. American.

I do not love the countless vile acts that we as human kind are responsible for. I do love human kindness. I love our response-ability. I love it because it is a repudiation of the tower of babel, the idea of eternal separateness. It is a statement that we can meet challenges together,and learn from our mistakes. 

I love America in the same way that I love humanity.  I do not want to forget the past. We need it in order to understand what we are here to learn. We have been showing the world how to behave badly. Let’s show it how to act with grace and kindness. We can do it.