There are alot of Americans who love to talk about returning to an America that closely mirrors the intentions of the founding fathers. These same founding fathers who owned slaves, saw nothing wrong with it, yet proclaimed that all men are free.
I believe this is where the dichotomy began and continues. Some may call it hypocritical, but for the sake of keeping my emotions in check to communicate clearly I will use the word dichotomy. I remember after 9/11 many politicians said we must fight for our freedom to walk about and live our lives freely. That we should not let others terrorize and change our way of living.
We live in a land of the free, but at the same time there are alot of us who are not free. The pursuit of happiness as the constitution states seems to be a fantasy for many. Yet those same people who want to return to the founding father's ideas, want to spread this "freedom" worldwide. Yes, we have free speech. For the most part. We have the ability to pursue happiness up to a point. But I'm not sure we are that different from the countries we are trying to democratize.
The world was watching...
When our bank system toppled the entire world economy without accountability or punishment
When we imprisoned (or interned as it was put) the Japanese citizens of this country
When Africans were brought to the Americas on ships and enslaved
When American Indians were cheated/bullied out of land they rightfully owned
When the Africans who were enslaved later were denied equal access to bathrooms, education, employment
When children are abused and molested with no report at the hands of a unified church system
When certain political groups feel the basic needs for food and shelter be denied to others
When....this list can get very very very long
Our troops are deployed to fight for the above atrocities in other parts of the world. How about we address our own?
There are two Americas. Those who have the freedom to walk about freely without fear of a police officer (or a want to be officer) questioning their motives, and those who do not enjoy that freedom. There are those who wonder if a store clerk is watching them because their hue is more likely to steal. There are parents who dread the day their son or daughter brings home a person of a darker hue.
I have spent most of my life living, working, going to school as a minority. One thing I learned quickly is some in the majority don't consider us human. This may seem harsh at first, but to me it's the only way I can figure out how one can justify killing another person because of what they look like. Some think African Americans have tails, Oprah had a guest who told her so. If one does not regard a person as human with a soul then killing that person becomes an afterthought. Much like this dog shooting earlier this month. Animal shelter workers can attest, many innocent creatures are treated horribly (I do not condone animal cruelty at all). Burned, hung, kicked, used for fighting, sold. Sound familiar?
I AM HUMAN!
These same founding father supporters will uphold the right to life, but show no mercy to the loss of life at the hands of a another. Dichotomy. Maybe they want more little brown and black lives to oppress. Makes them feel more important?
When a young unarmed man is shot in cold blood and the justice system essentially turns a blind eye to this atrocity, we have a big problem. But to me it seems like the same America we started with. If this is what the founding fathers intended then God will NOT bless America.
- My country, 'tis of thee,
- Stronghold of slavery, of thee I sing;
- Land where my fathers died,
- Where men man’s rights deride,
- From every mountainside thy deeds shall ring!
Abolitionist verses, 1843, A. G. Duncan
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