This Flag Is Mine

 That's right. 

The American flag is mine. If you're a black American, this flag is yours. If you're Asian-American, this flag is yours. If you're Hispanic, this flag is yours. If you're female or male, gay or straight, this flag is yours. Whether you're a Democrat or a Republican, an independent, a libertarian or a supporter of the Green Party, this flag is yours. If you are a legal immigrant, a naturalized citizen or someone living here illegally while hoping to become an American citizen, the flag is your, too.

It appears that the American flag has been co-opted by the maga movement, that they are, in their minds at least, the only truly patriotic Americans. But patriotism is so much more than simply wrapping oneself in the flag. 

Being patriotic means having a deep love and support for your country. It balances cherishing our country's values and history with the willingness to hold it accountable, striving for positive progress, and respecting the diverse fellow citizens who make up the community. It doesn't mean whitewashing or removing the parts of our country, such as slavery, that are embarassing to us. It does mean accepting and dealing with our nation's mistakes and striving not to repeat them. It means working to treat all people as equals regardless of gender, race, age or ethnic background. 

Seeking to bring in several thousand white South Africans because of the color of their skin is not patriotism. It is racism, pure and simple.

True patriotism is distinct from nationalism. While patriotism is rooted in devotion and civic duty, nationalsim can become dangerous when it seeks power, demands conformity, or inspites hatred toward others. This is precisely what we are seeing in America under the current regime. Acting to remove those with temporaty ptotected status, as is the case today with hundreds of thousands of people from Haiti and Syria who are facing deportation because they happen to have black or brown skin is not patriotism.

There are those who tell those of us who refuse to celebrate America's 250th birthday. There are those who say if we don't love this country, we should leave. Actually, the exact opposite is true. We will not leave America because we love her so much. We refuse to sit by and do nothing while our country, our Democratic way of life, are stolen from us.

The colors of the American flag are red, white and blue. They're not white or brown or black. They are red, white and blue. And I pray that someday soon we will take back our flag and show the world what it truly stands for.