For
years now, as long as I can remember, the right wing of the political
establishment, far more than the political left, and those in between,
as far as I know, have said that the U.S. is exceptional, that it was
the last best hope for a world longing for hope. This narrative is even
emblazoned on the Statue of liberty with the words:
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Emma Lazarus’
For the better part of 240 years, the United States, with its profound challenges, concerns and issues of injustice touted itself as exceptional, not like any other country or nation in the world. It was the place where many people could come to start a new life, a place where many could find the freedom to live out their dreams without fear. America was a shining house of liberty on a hill as it sought to live out the profound poem of the poet Emma Lazarus.
Millions of
working class Americans, with their support of the Trump administration,
and its policies meant to make America great again, have categorically
rejected the poem of Emma Lazarus and with it American exceptionalism.
America is no longer the last best hope of the world. To be clear, for
many, such as myself, an African American Women and Transgender, the
motto that the U.S. was exceptional was an important part of a grand
narrative more appropriate as a lie or a myth at best. It was clear
that the U.S. was exceptional if you were of European decent, primarily.
Anyone coming from Europe, i.e. France, Scandinavia, Norway, Germany,
Italy, England, etc. to the U.S. became white when they arrived on the
shores of the U.S. and thus received exclusive entitlement and benefits
of U.S. exceptionalism. Anyone not of European decent need not apply.
The American citizen of European decent was and still is, to a larger
extent, at the center of the western capitalist world in all respects of
empire. The western capitalist world was the white man’s burden and his
burden alone. That said, there is a longing, by some, as the world
becomes more and more globalized, diverse and inclusive, to once again
be the only one entitled to the vast riches and wealth of the world,
whether psychologically or in real time, this time minus the burden they
want to Make America Great Again.
Globalization, a shifting demographic, immigration, legal as well as illegal, and the ever more emerging technostate at the hands of the rich and wealthy, i.e., the one percent, primarily of European decent, present an impending doom as many working class people and their families having worked at the same corporation for generations, find themselves no longer entitled and/or privileged, as in times past. Many find themselves in circumstances and situations they never imagined to encounter. After years of telling the African American in particular, to lift themselves up by their bootstraps and to get off drugs, get a job, and take care of their family, considering the African American morally debased and unworthy of freedoms won by a civil war and progressive faith based legislation, many find themselves unemployed, on welfare or working multiple jobs, many dealing with gentrification and an opioid addiction which has become a crisis. Like many in black and brown communities, many in the white community now suffer a similar injustice experienced by many in black and brown communities. Driving around Richmond, El Cerrito, Berkeley, San Francisco, and Oakland, CA, the face of poverty, displacement and mental health concerns is diverse, dynamic and more and more a place of solidarity, where people regardless of race, gender, or sexuality are gradually being able speak with one voice.
In light of the unfortunate state of affairs experienced by many Americans, whether in red or blue states, the present politics and rhetoric, and the election of a man who practices tranactionalism as a political strategy towards authoritarian leanings; demanding allegiance from those who would be his sycophants, there would seem to be a collective immorality and cultishness in the American electorate, and I generalize on purpose here, which overcomes good common sense and virtue necessarily putting the republic and its democracy at risk. It has been said by many that there is a tribalism which taken root in our politics which infects both the democratic and republican party alike. Some politicians with nothing to lose politically, have called the republican party cultish.
This cultishness symbolizes a profound loss of hope as at least 63 million American citizens, primarily white, chose to use their power, mindful that there are other groups who don’t have the same power as they do, to elect an administration extreme and inhumane in their policies similar to authoritarian states such as Russia, China, North Korea necessarily risking a realignment of the U.S. from an uneasy arbiter of hope to one of outright despotism. The once mighty nation, the leader of the free world has abdicated its leadership, at the behest of the Trump supporter, for lesser smaller minded things which don’t bode well for future things.
Finally, the extreme hatred expressed in governmental policies of the Trump administration come as Philip Alston, the United Nations’ special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, report states that, “The American dream is rapidly becoming the American illusion,” Alston states in the report. “The equality of opportunity, which is so prized in theory, is in practice a myth, especially for minorities and women, but also for many middle-class white workers.” The report is a call to action for those who care, who want and need a better society for all. There are many who experience what the report of the U.N. says everyday of their life. Many have one, two or in some cases three jobs to make ends barely meet. I’ve met scientists, engineers, people who I thought would have good paying jobs on the street, homeless. What we have is a nation that has lost its way as it seeks to navigate its demons of race, white entitlement, supremacy, venture capitalism, and a moral depravity which has gripped its very soul.
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Emma Lazarus’
For the better part of 240 years, the United States, with its profound challenges, concerns and issues of injustice touted itself as exceptional, not like any other country or nation in the world. It was the place where many people could come to start a new life, a place where many could find the freedom to live out their dreams without fear. America was a shining house of liberty on a hill as it sought to live out the profound poem of the poet Emma Lazarus.
Millions of
working class Americans, with their support of the Trump administration,
and its policies meant to make America great again, have categorically
rejected the poem of Emma Lazarus and with it American exceptionalism.
America is no longer the last best hope of the world. To be clear, for
many, such as myself, an African American Women and Transgender, the
motto that the U.S. was exceptional was an important part of a grand
narrative more appropriate as a lie or a myth at best. It was clear
that the U.S. was exceptional if you were of European decent, primarily.
Anyone coming from Europe, i.e. France, Scandinavia, Norway, Germany,
Italy, England, etc. to the U.S. became white when they arrived on the
shores of the U.S. and thus received exclusive entitlement and benefits
of U.S. exceptionalism. Anyone not of European decent need not apply.
The American citizen of European decent was and still is, to a larger
extent, at the center of the western capitalist world in all respects of
empire. The western capitalist world was the white man’s burden and his
burden alone. That said, there is a longing, by some, as the world
becomes more and more globalized, diverse and inclusive, to once again
be the only one entitled to the vast riches and wealth of the world,
whether psychologically or in real time, this time minus the burden they
want to Make America Great Again.Globalization, a shifting demographic, immigration, legal as well as illegal, and the ever more emerging technostate at the hands of the rich and wealthy, i.e., the one percent, primarily of European decent, present an impending doom as many working class people and their families having worked at the same corporation for generations, find themselves no longer entitled and/or privileged, as in times past. Many find themselves in circumstances and situations they never imagined to encounter. After years of telling the African American in particular, to lift themselves up by their bootstraps and to get off drugs, get a job, and take care of their family, considering the African American morally debased and unworthy of freedoms won by a civil war and progressive faith based legislation, many find themselves unemployed, on welfare or working multiple jobs, many dealing with gentrification and an opioid addiction which has become a crisis. Like many in black and brown communities, many in the white community now suffer a similar injustice experienced by many in black and brown communities. Driving around Richmond, El Cerrito, Berkeley, San Francisco, and Oakland, CA, the face of poverty, displacement and mental health concerns is diverse, dynamic and more and more a place of solidarity, where people regardless of race, gender, or sexuality are gradually being able speak with one voice.
In light of the unfortunate state of affairs experienced by many Americans, whether in red or blue states, the present politics and rhetoric, and the election of a man who practices tranactionalism as a political strategy towards authoritarian leanings; demanding allegiance from those who would be his sycophants, there would seem to be a collective immorality and cultishness in the American electorate, and I generalize on purpose here, which overcomes good common sense and virtue necessarily putting the republic and its democracy at risk. It has been said by many that there is a tribalism which taken root in our politics which infects both the democratic and republican party alike. Some politicians with nothing to lose politically, have called the republican party cultish.
This cultishness symbolizes a profound loss of hope as at least 63 million American citizens, primarily white, chose to use their power, mindful that there are other groups who don’t have the same power as they do, to elect an administration extreme and inhumane in their policies similar to authoritarian states such as Russia, China, North Korea necessarily risking a realignment of the U.S. from an uneasy arbiter of hope to one of outright despotism. The once mighty nation, the leader of the free world has abdicated its leadership, at the behest of the Trump supporter, for lesser smaller minded things which don’t bode well for future things.
Finally, the extreme hatred expressed in governmental policies of the Trump administration come as Philip Alston, the United Nations’ special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, report states that, “The American dream is rapidly becoming the American illusion,” Alston states in the report. “The equality of opportunity, which is so prized in theory, is in practice a myth, especially for minorities and women, but also for many middle-class white workers.” The report is a call to action for those who care, who want and need a better society for all. There are many who experience what the report of the U.N. says everyday of their life. Many have one, two or in some cases three jobs to make ends barely meet. I’ve met scientists, engineers, people who I thought would have good paying jobs on the street, homeless. What we have is a nation that has lost its way as it seeks to navigate its demons of race, white entitlement, supremacy, venture capitalism, and a moral depravity which has gripped its very soul.
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