Overcoming the Red, White, and Blues
I spent my childhood split between small towns in America, specifically Oregon. I was born in Southern Oregon and lived in a mobile home park until I was 6, at which time my family moved to the Northwest Coast. These towns always made huge festivals out of the 4th of July, bigger in some ways than any other "National" holiday. In Southern Oregon, these spectacles were closely followed in scale by Memorial Day parades. People came out in droves to show their support for this country, and on the coast there were plenty of late night parties with expensive food, cheap beer, and fireworks over the ocean. My parents flew an American flag that was supported by a flag holder on our porch. For many years this meant it was right outside my window.
I always appreciated these festivities and was inspired by the sense of pride that people had. This inspiration is why I decided to get the tattoo that I did: a blue nautical star with a tattered red and white banner behind it. I was 18 at the time of the tattoo. I personally didn't know much about politics, just what my parents told me. I fully admit that part of the reason I got that specific tattoo was because the patriotism I had witnessed was one of the few things that was inspiring enough for me to conceptually lay out as a tattoo, at least up to that point in my life.
The truth was that I was putting on a show. The whole time. I liked the excitement, but there was something about the patriots that I knew at the time that brought some underlying unease. Then I came out to my parents, made some new friends, and found out why I was uneasy with this sense of national pride that I was used to celebrating. I learned that the promises of the Constitution were not being met. I learned that people who were hated for being who they were, people like me, had not only been lacking protection for these basic rights, but had people within our proud government actively seeking to destroy them. That was when I first became an activist. That was when I amended my tattoo to read "Whatever happened to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." That was when I declared my own independence.
I always appreciated these festivities and was inspired by the sense of pride that people had. This inspiration is why I decided to get the tattoo that I did: a blue nautical star with a tattered red and white banner behind it. I was 18 at the time of the tattoo. I personally didn't know much about politics, just what my parents told me. I fully admit that part of the reason I got that specific tattoo was because the patriotism I had witnessed was one of the few things that was inspiring enough for me to conceptually lay out as a tattoo, at least up to that point in my life.
The truth was that I was putting on a show. The whole time. I liked the excitement, but there was something about the patriots that I knew at the time that brought some underlying unease. Then I came out to my parents, made some new friends, and found out why I was uneasy with this sense of national pride that I was used to celebrating. I learned that the promises of the Constitution were not being met. I learned that people who were hated for being who they were, people like me, had not only been lacking protection for these basic rights, but had people within our proud government actively seeking to destroy them. That was when I first became an activist. That was when I amended my tattoo to read "Whatever happened to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." That was when I declared my own independence.
For a long time, seeing the Old Glory brought me disappointment and disgust. I believed in people being able to live and walk their own beautifully diverse paths. My government had betrayed me and had betrayed these founding principles. I had been in conversation with friends who said they would leave the country if so-and-so won the election, and I told them not to leave me behind. I had surrounded myself with people who feared the government. We didn't give ourselves power. We didn't acknowledge the voice that had been given to us by our Founding Fathers. During this time I was afraid of people who claimed to be patriots. I thought they were all bullies and bigots, hiding their hate behind a flag, religion, and the privilege to intimidate people with their collection of guns.
I think anybody reading this knows times have changed, and so have I. In my lifetime there have been major strides for equality for many walks of life. Don't Ask Don't Tell was struck down, allowing people of any sexual identity to openly and proudly fight for the freedom this country offers. The Defense of Marriage Act was struck down and now people across the country can openly marry their lover regardless of gender. We have had our first African American President, and he helped the country recover after his predecessor drove us into Recession. For all of our tragedies, and for all of our steps backward, we have pushed forward to secure the promises made to us in the Constitution and called for in the Declaration of Independence.
My intention is to call for all the people who are like me. People who have looked at the Old Glory and seen it as a sign of oppression. People who have seen corruption and felt powerless. There are more of us than we ever imagined, and our numbers grow daily. I now choose to call myself a patriot, not because I have the right to oppress other people, but because with my voice I have the chance to live my life free. With my voice I can help protect others who are being oppressed. With our voices we cry out and drown out the voices of hate. Black rights, gay rights, women rights, and ALL HUMAN RIGHTS. If we stand together and stand for each other then we can and will win, just as the Founding Fathers stood together for their freedom from oppression from their own corrupt government. America's story is one filled with many mistakes, but ripe with the ability to learn from these mistakes and grow into a better version of itself.
I choose to defend my country against those would destroy its purity from the inside. I am a true patriot of the free America.
I think anybody reading this knows times have changed, and so have I. In my lifetime there have been major strides for equality for many walks of life. Don't Ask Don't Tell was struck down, allowing people of any sexual identity to openly and proudly fight for the freedom this country offers. The Defense of Marriage Act was struck down and now people across the country can openly marry their lover regardless of gender. We have had our first African American President, and he helped the country recover after his predecessor drove us into Recession. For all of our tragedies, and for all of our steps backward, we have pushed forward to secure the promises made to us in the Constitution and called for in the Declaration of Independence.
My intention is to call for all the people who are like me. People who have looked at the Old Glory and seen it as a sign of oppression. People who have seen corruption and felt powerless. There are more of us than we ever imagined, and our numbers grow daily. I now choose to call myself a patriot, not because I have the right to oppress other people, but because with my voice I have the chance to live my life free. With my voice I can help protect others who are being oppressed. With our voices we cry out and drown out the voices of hate. Black rights, gay rights, women rights, and ALL HUMAN RIGHTS. If we stand together and stand for each other then we can and will win, just as the Founding Fathers stood together for their freedom from oppression from their own corrupt government. America's story is one filled with many mistakes, but ripe with the ability to learn from these mistakes and grow into a better version of itself.
I choose to defend my country against those would destroy its purity from the inside. I am a true patriot of the free America.
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