I am a Patriot.
I am a die-hard, pro-America, land of the free supporter. As I heard my sister say once, "Just wrap me in the flag" and that's the truth. There has been a lot of "discussion" (we shall call it judgement) surrounding the actions of some in the entertainment industry in recent weeks and it has sparked a lot of "reflection" for me. I've been somewhat surprised at my own self for the evolution of my feelings over the course of the week. I shall impart some of this now...
Lochte just pissed me off, plain and simple. His actions in Rio were NOT representative of a respected athlete. He was acting out and I think he should be punished. I say we strip the medal(s) and kick him off the team. It was just shameful, if you ask me. And that's what I have to say about that.
Then, well, there's Colin Kaepernick. (Bear with me here...)
At first, Kaepernick pissed me off. I'll be honest. My initial feelings were that I was extremely offended by his actions. Sitting down during the National Anthem? I thought it was the most disrespectful thing that an American could do. How dare anyone turn their back on this country? I was especially irritated when he explained his actions and made reference to the flag as a symbol of oppression. I thought that was really rich coming from him. Here he is, an entertainer, playing football on a multi-million dollar contract, choosing to sit down during the presentation of the flag and the National Anthem as a way to stand up to oppression. You want to fight? Don't just sit down and make that sound like a valiant effort to stand up for something. And what do you know about oppression anyway? I was livid. Then, I thought about it some more.
(Stay with me...) Why was I so offended?
I was reading on the book of faces this week and one post caught my eye (and led to some thought evolution): a friend posted about how much he hated the song and thought it was the worst part of sporting events (I am paraphrasing). Then another friend commented about how it was disrespectful to sit down during this time. The friend (original post) then replied "Disrespect or disregard?" Hmmm. What was REALLY making me mad? Why was I judging so?
You see, the presentation of the flag and the singing of the National Anthem means A LOT to me. It is symbolic and evokes emotions very deep inside. When I was in high school, the biggest honor was when I was asked to sing the National Anthem at a couple of sporting events. It was a way to honor the country and our freedom that had been fought for and won. I had friends whose parents went away to fight to defend that freedom. I remember how scary it all was and how I didn't always understand what was going on in the world. I thought that for those couple of moments during the National Anthem, the entire population thought the very same thing as I did, "We must pay tribute to those who gave their lives to keep us safe!"
As an adult, the flag and National Anthem sort of "came alive" for me in a different way. I was in a relationship with someone who was deployed to Iraq and was in the front lines of the invasion in 2003. My biggest nightmare was realized when I got a call that he'd been injured and was being med-evac'ed out of country and it didn't look good. His brothers in arms died. People were dying!!! It was scary and awful and I was helpless. When he made it back stateside and was in the hospital in Jacksonville, I would visit him and just think "Wow. So many of these guys and girls in these rooms sacrificed so that bombs don't fall in our back yard. The families of these people had to kiss them goodbye as they went to undisclosed places in the world to fight the bad guys and they (I) have no idea how this can turn out." I thought about 9/11 and how terror arrived on our doorstep. I thought about so much and guess what? I re-live ALL of those thoughts and feelings every single time I see the flag and/or hear the National Anthem. Every.single.time.
I think about all of those men and women that serve in our military and those that work as policemen, firefighters, EMS workers, nurses, doctors. This week it occurred to me, all of those folks have one thing in common: they don't go to work every day to fight to defend a piece of cloth or a song. They keep us safe, they help us when we are in need; they defend our RIGHTS. People have the right (by the very nature of rights) to stand up, sit down or even do the hokey-pokey if they want during the National Anthem. For me, I see it as a privilege to put my hand over my heart and look at the flag and hear the song. Does everyone see it that way? Nope. And that's ok. (See the evolution here?)
I have the right to bear arms. And I do.
I have the right to say what I think. And I do.
I have the right to post whatever my little heart desires. And I do.
I will stand up and defend these rights along with all the others!
By the same token, I applaud Kaepernick for defending his rights. I've seen many service personnel praise him for exercising those rights that they've fought to secure. So, good for you! Own it.
Now, for the real problem that I see...How are we going to end the oppression? If we all sit down during the National Anthem, will all the tension, evil, racial divide, killing of innocent people, and oppression disappear? I would think it grand if it were that simple, but it isn't. Here's the thing: Kaepernick made a gesture. That gesture brought to light the ideas/feelings/emotions that many hold with regard to what the flag represents. I totally get it. We're all talking about it. So now what do we do about it? Do we keep having divisive posts and opinions that lead to even more tension and hatred? I hope not because we, as a nation, are disintegrating at a rapid clip and we need to stop it. Now is the time to DO something. It begins with each of us...way down deep in our soul. To me, it seems the easiest answer, but it is the hardest step:
Stop the judgement. Stop perpetuating negativity. Stop being stubborn and closed-minded. Turn away from hate. Be thankful. Be a light for others.
~LG
