[For my Patriots’ Day series this year, I highlighted examples of mythic patriotism from across American history. So I thought for my July 4th series I would AmericanStudy examples of the other, directly opposed category at the heart of Of Thee I Sing: critical patriotism. Leading up to this weekend post on the state of critical patriotism in 2024!]
On
protests that exemplify critical patriotism, protests that don’t quite, and why
it’s not as simple as that.
As part of
a Patriots’ Day series back in 2016, I highlighted
#BlackLivesMatter co-founder Alicia Garza as an example of 21st
century critical patriotism. I believe the last eight years have more than
borne that out, and would go further and argue that the Summer
2020 #BlackLivesMatter protests exemplify critical patriotism as well as
any recent events. There are lots of ways I could make that case, including of
course the protests’ overarching goal of pushing the nation closer to its
stated ideals of (among others) equality and justice for all. But one detail
that really struck me with each and every protest was the fact that virtually
all the participants (or at
least a clear majority, but often the vast majority) were wearing masks, looking
out for each other and their communities during that pandemic moment. To my
mind, critical patriotism isn’t just about what we say, but also and especially
what we do; and while protesting is one meaningful such action, protesting in
ways that look out for each other is an even more inspiring example.
I was very
hesitant to write about this year’s campus protests as part of this post (or anywhere
else), because I think they’re a genuine minefield of complex and contradictory
issues. I absolutely support students’ expressing their freedom of speech and
standing up for what they believe, as I hope this
column made clear. But I would also argue that in some significant ways these
campus protests do not qualify as examples of critical patriotism, and I’d
highlight two such ways in particular: the number of speakers and chants at the
protests that have quite specifically defined
the United States as a negative presence if not indeed a villain on the
global landscape (a perfectly understandable perspective to argue for, but
definitely not a critical patriotic one); and the too-frequent ways in which at
least some protest participants have attacked members of their own communities,
especially Jewish
community members and at least sometimes
with Nazi imagery (which is not at all understandable as a perspective, and
closer to the form of patriotism I define as mythic and exclusionary than any
other).
Those
differences between the 2020 and 2024 mass protests are real and significant,
and do to my mind mean that the 2020 protests qualify as critical patriotism far
more than do the 2024 ones (which of course is far from the only way to define
or measure them). But at the same time, even if we acknowledge that those 2024
elements were present and even more consistent than would be ideal, I would
nonetheless add that the campus protests did in fact help push the nation, and
more exactly the federal government, closer to our shared ideals, with one
excellent example being the Biden administration suspending
military support for the Netanyahu administration’s campaign of genocidal
violence against the Gazan city of Rafah. Protests always exist on a spectrum
from the most inspiring and critical patriotic to the least so (January
6th, anyone?), and while I believe the 2020 protests were further
along that spectrum than the 2024 ones have been, there are still without question
critical patriotic effects of this year’s protests. And if that helps remind us
of both what protests can accomplish and the overarching value of critical patriotism,
that’ll be a great pair of July 4th lessons to keep in mind, in this
election year and at every American moment.
Next
series starts Monday,
Ben
PS. What
do you think? Other examples of critical patriotism, past or present, you’d
highlight?
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