It's Time We Take It Back

Ever since this blog was on MySpace, I have stated that I am not a "Flag Waver."  It's not that I'm not patriotic.  I merely believe that displaying a flag is nothing more than an empty gesture.  It's not patriotism.  It's virtue signaling ("Look at me!  I'm displaying a flag.  I'm so patriotic.") at its best.  At its worst, it's jingoism.  It’s performative rather than active.

I always believed patriotic displays are meaningless.  Our country needs real action, not symbolic displays, to survive.  Putting the Stars and Stripes on your home, your car, your person, and your pet doesn't do anything to make this country a better place.  Forcing children to say the Pledge of Allegiance every day doesn't guarantee they will grow up to be good citizens.  Forcing athletes to stand for the National Anthem will not make them believe that racism isn't a problem in this country any more than forcing an atheist to pray will make him believe in God. 

On the other hand, I don't think such displays are bad or wrong.  I never thought they served much purpose, but that doesn't mean all American citizens who feel the need to create demonstrations of national pride always have an agenda.  Sometimes a flag is just a flag.

Or is it?  In a post-Trump world, I begin to wonder.

These days whenever Kevin and I are on the road (and we are on the road all the time), when we spot a vehicle with an obvious display of a flag or other patriotic regalia, one of us will comment, "That's a Trump supporter."  How did we end up making this connection between flags and voting habits?  

More to the point, what does it mean when we label someone a "Trump Supporter"?  In the past five years we came to the point where making assumptions about how others vote is a proxy for something far more sinister.  "Trump Supporter" isn't only about the ex-president.  To call someone a Trump Supporter is to also accuse that person of racism, nationalism, xenophobia, Christian fundamentalism, unfettered and destructive capitalism, and anti-intellectualism.  

The connection doesn't end with the flags.  Even language has been hijacked.  Words like freedom and liberty seem to be intertwined with right wing ideology.

When I was on vacation in Chincoteague (a bright red town in a purple state) last week, I visited my favorite t-shirt shop and purchased this shirt.

My mother observed it and thought it was cute.  She even considered buying one for herself, but she was turned off by the language on the shirt.  It came across as right-wing.  I know what she meant, but I was struck by how we have allowed the language that should belong to all Americans become the language of the Right.  

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness is a phrase from the Declaration of Independence.  That is not a conservative document.  It is a radical one.  It is also a document that belongs to all Americans (although at the time it was written its principles didn't apply to all Americans).  I should be able to display that language on my person without anyone thinking I'm a Republican.  That shirt has nothing to do with politics.  Unfortunately, our country has allowed words like liberty and freedom to become fighting words for right-wing extremists.

The word liberal and the word liberty come from the same root.  Liberal means free.  It doesn’t mean communist authoritarianism.  Liberals have stood by too long and let conservatives tell the rest of the world what freedom is and how liberals hate it.  When liberals avoid using the symbols and language associated with our country's most deeply-held principles, we give conservatives more ammunition for their attacks on us.  We also allow them to keep these words for themselves.  If we reject the language and the representations of patriotism, we give conservatives permission to own them.  When they conservatives own them, they make them mean only what they want them to mean.

What is freedom? It can be hard to define, even for me.  If I have to define it, I would say it is the right and responsibility every American has to conduct the course of his or her own life, and have equal access to the means of living in accordance with one's beliefs. If you are a functional member of this society, but are denied the benefits of living within that society, then you are not free.  

I can also tell you what I think freedom is not.

Freedom is not the right of conservatives to control the narrative in schools and the media and eliminate anything that makes them uncomfortable.  

Freedom is not the right of white people to openly carry assault weapons.  

Freedom is not the right of racists to spew their hatred with no pushback or consequence.  The First Amendment is intended to prevent government censorship.  It doesn't apply to private citizens or private corporations who don't want to hear or promote your crap.

Freedom is not the right of Christians to insert their beliefs into our laws so they can force those beliefs on others.  If you claim you don't want the government in your life, then you can't turn around and tell other Americans the government can create laws that deal with your personal business because your religion forbids it.

Freedom is not doing whatever you can to restrict the voting rights of people who might not vote the way you do.

Freedom is not dependent upon acts of war.

Maybe it's time for me to start displaying flags.  I want my patriotism to be about meaningful and effective action, but why not throw a bit of performance in there?  Seeing American flags makes some people feel good.  Any Americans who display a flag should not have assumptions made about them.  The only assumption one should make about a flag waver is, "That person loves her country."  The assumption should never be, "That person is one of us. Trump fans unite!"  

I should never be afraid to use words like freedom and liberty.  I should use them often and make sure everyone knows what I mean by them.  I'll quote the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence and any other founding document because those documents belong to all of us.  That language isn't conservative language.  It's American language.  

Liberals, it's time for us to take our symbols back and our language back.  Don't let the other side own the definition of freedom.  Don't let the other side try to own the narrative that only they love our country.  We know better.  The words and symbols of freedom are ours as much as theirs and it's time we reclaim them.