During this election season, the question of “what does it mean to be an American” forms the basis of what this year’s election will be about.

While individuals have their idea of what it means to be an American, from a cumulative perspective, the conversation is complicated and can be answered on three levels; historical, mythological, and aspirational.

The American story is ripe with mythology. Many immigrants came to America with the idea of streets paved with gold. The reality is best summed up by Brooklyn humorist Sam Levinson who said when his father came to America he found out that the “streets were not paved with gold, the streets were not paved, and he was expected to pave them.”

The reality is that when the question is asked what does it mean to be an America, we must accept the historical truth with the aspirational theory. We are a nation that has denied rights, yet we are a nation that seeks to reach the highest ideals of a democratic society.

Even as America’s founding documents were being prepared, slavery was a central aspect of the American story.

While we celebrate religious diversity, there was a time in American history when Roman Catholics were prohibited from holding elected office in states such as New Jersey. Most recently, there was a discussion of banning Muslims from entering the country.

We celebrate due process but thousands of Asian Americans were kept in internment camps during WWII.

We have an aspirational ethos of Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream,” and John Winthrop’s “City on a hill” alongside the history of an egregious supreme court justice Roger Taney and William Buckley writing “Why the south must prevail” promoting segregation.

We have a nation that speaks of equal opportunity yet is replete with decades of redlining, sexual, religious and racial discrimination.

We have de Tocqvilleve’s admiration for American society yet demeaning black people in his writings.

We are a nation with an aspirational quest for peace and yet we have more guns than the population and remain the only nation to drop two hydrogen bombs on another nation.

We are a nation that prides itself on looking out for their neighbor, yet during the Covid 19 pandemic, struggles with John Stuart Mills’s notion of the harm principle.

A nation that says the people should be trusted, but yet the founding documents are implicit in its distrust of the American people as the final arbiters of who shall control the government by creating the electoral college.

When we hear of a domestic attack, or racial incidents we hear the refrain, “this is not who we are.” The reality is that it is who we are. Violence is an essential part of American history and sometimes celebrated. When politicians say, this is not who we are, that is an aspirational response to an historical and present reality. Witness the recently foiled plot to kidnap Governor Whitmer followed by thousands at a rally chanting “lock her up” led by the President of the United States.

This brings us to how shall we define ourselves from historical or aspirational perspectives. The reality is that both are vital yet in tension with one another.

From an aspirational perspective, we are a nation “that holds these truths to be self-evident that every man is created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.” Historically, that aspiration has been partially realized and expanded with blood, sweat, and tears.

Nonetheless, it is the struggle to implement that aspiration which forms a large part of who we are. The aspirational perspective reminds us that we are not perfect and provides us with a goal to achieve.

The best and most honest response to who we are is accepting both the historical reality and the aspirational desires and figuring out how to deal with the tension between the two.

There is no doubt that the nation has moved from some of its most egregious historical episodes toward a more fair and just country. Recent events however, remind us how fragile that progress is. Dr. King said “the arc of history is long, but it bends towards justice. “ Implicit in that statement is that the arc bends towards justice because people who believe in the potential of the nation are willing to bend it towards a new reality.

When we begin to mythologize, forget, or ignore our history, we are led into complacency. We should celebrate freedom but let’s not forget the cost of that freedom. While we celebrate the greatness and possibility of America; let’s not forget the millions who never enjoyed opportunity whether through the middle passage or other atrocities.

The way to understand ourselves as Americans is to understand that we are the recipients of constant change.  We are actors in an ever-changing reality heading toward a more perfect union.

We are once again in the mist of tensions between the historical reality and aspirations.

Some people will say those who complain about America should know what it’s like to live in other nations. That viewpoint is erroneous and irrelevant. America should be critiqued according to the standards espoused in its founding documents and rhetoric.

While aspirations are generally viewed as positive nonetheless, it has led to tremendous tension in this country. The righteous cause of the civil rights movement, women’s movement, gay rights movement, immigrant rights, led to tremendous tension and even violence. All of these movements stemmed from a reality that was no longer deemed tolerable by people negatively affected. From the Me Too movement to Black Lives Matter, the aspirations of people has always been to be treated with dignity and respect.

In 1857 Frederick Douglass said in his West India Emancipation “if there is no struggle, there is no progress”

Aspirations will always create tensions as they go up against the present day reality.

From a collective perspective, to be an American is to be in the midst of a never-ending march towards becoming a more perfect union. Despite the challenges and periodic setbacks, nonetheless, it is the story of America, it is the essence of what it truly means to be American.

From native born Americans to those who come from other countries, it should never be forgotten that whatever progress or advancement is made on an individual level, it was made possible because of the blood, sweat and tears of those who put their aspirations into motion and changed the present reality.

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