In the last year, patriotism in this country has soared. We have many good reasons to be proud of ourselves, especially in the way we put our differences aside and came together for each other when faced with a very tough situation.
While we have a lot to be proud of, we need to make sure we’re proud of the right things. In the weeks that followed September 11, many of us—including the president of the United States—classified our attackers as “evil” people who deserved to be destroyed as swiftly as possible. At the time, this helped give us focus in the confusion and rallied us behind the cause of stopping terrorism throughout the world.
But with time and the opportunity to see more clearly, it’s important to remember that the people who attacked us were thinking just that way about America. It’s not enough to say “we’re good and they’re evil” anymore—to do so makes us no better than them. We need to remember what made this country great in the first place and continue those traditions into the future.
America is a country founded on the principles of making our piece of the world a better place for everyone. We’re willing to stand up for what we believe in, even amongst ourselves. We’ve seen turbulent times as we wrestled with our moral battles, every time coming out better and stronger. We value freedom, equality, and human life, and while we haven’t really gotten it perfect yet, we’re always working to make it better.
We’ve accomplished a lot as a nation, and we have a right to be proud. But we can’t afford to rest on the accomplishments of the past. We need to continue to improve ourselves—both as a nation and as individuals—to show the world just how great a people we are, and how great we will always be.
