Stop Calling Me "The American People"
- Details
- Published on Friday, 29 April 2011 21:08
- Written by Chase McGee
There is an extraordinary beauty in the shades of color and the depth of difference one finds in our nation. Every conceivable characteristic with which the men and women that comprise this country are imbued is but a dot on the spectrum of the American experience. You are black, I am white. You are a Catholic, I am an atheist. You are a Republican, I am a Democrat. Yet, as with the spectrum, there is an inalienable interconnectivity between us. We walk the same soil, we breath the same air, we rejoice in prosperity, and we grieve in times of loss.
Even with our innumerable differences, we are still bonded as Americans.
The beauty of this variety-in-nature has been perverted by the perennially corrosive world of politicking. Every politician I love or loathe is guilty of corralling each individual American into unanimity under the superficially patriotic "American people." This blatant glossing over of the exponential disparity in Americans' individual beliefs does a disservice to the right of free-thinking which contributes to the definition of an American. The idea that a hippy in San Francisco shares the political values of a cowboy in Houston is, while not infeasible, a stupendous long-shot.
The most deleterious effect engendered by this political cant is the misguided attempt to suggest a loose grasp of the majority translates to universal consent. What's worse, those who use it erringly are conscious of the fact that it is an outrageous misnomer. I am part of the ever-expanding American tapestry, and yet I did not send any message to Congress to repeal the new health care law, much to the contrary of what Speaker of the House Boehner would have you believe. Collectivizing the American sentiment is a betrayal of democracy and a subtle, but powerful, condemnation of dissent.
The recent pledge to promote civility and tone down the political pejoratives hurled from one camp to another are honorable in intent, but lacking in substance. To fully realize the pleasant cooperation towards which our politicians claim to strive, we must fully realize the multitude of blueprints that have gone into the architecture of America. We cannot make an honest attempt to cooperate if our main directive is to claim a monopoly on public opinion instead of finding common ground among these diverse conclusions to bear a product more resembling a mélange of political ideals.
My uncle and I disagree quite passionately on many things, but he is my uncle and I love him. It is this fundamental ability to differ and still embrace one another, along with differing perspectives, which is a missing link in the political dialectic. While it is easier with family, our nation must evolve to a point where our differences do not separate us, but only give us a unique characteristic in relation to one another. When we are set free from our shackles as strands on the rope of the political tug of war, only then can we celebrate - united as one "American people."
