Really?
America's a big bully. When we were first founded we complained and revolted against a king who pushed us around. We fought for freedom, liberty, happiness, and the ability to control what we wanted. We got that control and ever since then we've been finding groups of people we can assert that control over. There's always been a dividing line in this country between "us" and "them." People gain strength by exposing the weaknesses or differences of others.
I'm taking a citizenship class this semester and for the first time in my life I'm being morally outraged by politics. My professor, a really awesome woman, has really pushed us to think about what it means to be a citizen. Everyone today takes citizenship for granted. Voter apathy and political ignorance is depressingly high. What makes it even sadder is that ever since we became a country there are so many groups who have been disenfranchised. People have fought to be included in this privilege, yes, voting is a privilege, and now people rarely know what issues are even on the ballot. Voting was a privilege for white men owning property andnot too long ago that left out women, the poor, and people of color. We talk about the greatness of America, but we seem to forget that we've had our trangsressions. In the 1900s women who married foreigners lost their right to be American citizens, Asians weren't allowed citizenship at all, the interracial marriage ban was lifted in 1967 in Virginia, and only in 2005 did Alabama lift the interracial marriage ban. These are only a few examples where we as a country have failed to live up to our standards.
We have Lady Liberty who stands as our emblem of freedom and justice. She says "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-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" Have we become so high and mighty that we have forgotten that we are supposed to be protecting rights, rather than taking them away? We have oppressed women, people of color, immigrants, and even children. The new "them" to pick on, the gay community. It's disheartening to be part of a country that gains prestige because it has brought down so many others.
This might seem more than a little harsh. Maybe this is just my moral outrage against people who dont vote or who dont feel the need to be involved in important issues. America has done good things and comparatively has given more freedom than most countries. But we could be better. We could have higher voter turnout. We could have people who are knowledgeable about issues. We could be extending freedom rather than taking it away.
Today was an opportunity to do that. It's 1 day out of 365 days. I am disappointed Virginia, I really am.
I'm taking a citizenship class this semester and for the first time in my life I'm being morally outraged by politics. My professor, a really awesome woman, has really pushed us to think about what it means to be a citizen. Everyone today takes citizenship for granted. Voter apathy and political ignorance is depressingly high. What makes it even sadder is that ever since we became a country there are so many groups who have been disenfranchised. People have fought to be included in this privilege, yes, voting is a privilege, and now people rarely know what issues are even on the ballot. Voting was a privilege for white men owning property andnot too long ago that left out women, the poor, and people of color. We talk about the greatness of America, but we seem to forget that we've had our trangsressions. In the 1900s women who married foreigners lost their right to be American citizens, Asians weren't allowed citizenship at all, the interracial marriage ban was lifted in 1967 in Virginia, and only in 2005 did Alabama lift the interracial marriage ban. These are only a few examples where we as a country have failed to live up to our standards.
We have Lady Liberty who stands as our emblem of freedom and justice. She says "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-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" Have we become so high and mighty that we have forgotten that we are supposed to be protecting rights, rather than taking them away? We have oppressed women, people of color, immigrants, and even children. The new "them" to pick on, the gay community. It's disheartening to be part of a country that gains prestige because it has brought down so many others.
This might seem more than a little harsh. Maybe this is just my moral outrage against people who dont vote or who dont feel the need to be involved in important issues. America has done good things and comparatively has given more freedom than most countries. But we could be better. We could have higher voter turnout. We could have people who are knowledgeable about issues. We could be extending freedom rather than taking it away.
Today was an opportunity to do that. It's 1 day out of 365 days. I am disappointed Virginia, I really am.