As I watched the fireworks last night, I was reminded of something. As the flashes went off, everyone sat and watched with awe at the dazzling display of colors in the air. People weren’t fighting, bickering or quarreling over different political views or preferences. Not a single person was complaining about who was POTUS or why we should or shouldn’t ban all guns. I did not hear a single scream about biased news or inequality.
At that moment, we were all just watching the fireworks.
We were united as Americans celebrating this country’s values, culture, and freedoms. Because at the end of the day, everyone wants to make this world a better place. Parents want to leave a better world for their children. These times make it easy to forget that. Whether you are Liberal or Conservative, you are trying to do what you honestly believe is right.
But that does not mean that you are correct.
I am not going to sit here and pretend I don’t have strong political views. This is not a wishy-washy Centrist piece, complaining about how both sides just need to love each other more. I think perspective is important, especially with issues that may determine the direction this nation chooses to go in. Sometimes, we as the People, lose sight of what is important.
Regardless of intentions, we have a duty to uphold. You should fight for what you believe in.
In some of the most famous words ever written: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” [1]. This is the foundation of this country. When the Founding Fathers said these truths are self-evident, they meant it.
America was not founded on the idea that we needed to create freedom. The Founding Fathers did not think that they needed to invent the rights of the individual. America was founded on these truths being self-evident. That everyone was born equal and with certain rights no matter what the government, the people, or anyone else said. And the one and only job of the government was to uphold those rights.
This should be the measuring stick for everything we decide to do, and anything we may argue about. Does it uphold these truths? This is a question that almost no one seems to be asking anymore.
I am proud to be American because of the virtues that this country was founded on. And I hold beliefs that I feel reflect these values. This is worth fighting for. As much as we are all united as Americans, different sides hold vastly different views of right and wrong. I can respect someone’s conviction in feeling that they are doing the right thing, but it does not mean that I stop fighting for what I know to be true.
I do not believe that abortion upholds these values. I do not believe gun control upholds these values. I may be wrong. But it is my duty as a free citizen to act in such a way that upholds these truths.
Everyone can argue until they are blue in the face. We can campaign for different public policies and get whatever politician we’re backing in charge. We can fight and demonize each other. We can mock one another for our religious beliefs or skin color. But it will never change that these are truths that I have a duty to uphold. And I “hold these truths to be self-evident”.
I do not hate anyone, but I have a duty to hate certain ideology.
This is a hill I am willing to die on.
[1] “The Declaration of Independence: Full Text.” Ushistory.org. N. p., 2018. Web. 5 July 2018.
http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/
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