On the morning of July 4th, I decided to check my Facebook. As I was reading through my feed, I stumbled upon this status by Governor Gary Herbert (R-UT):
Post by Gary R. Herbert.
On face value, it seems like a very nice post that celebrates the spirit of the county on our Independence Day. However, I was taken aback by this sentence in Herbert’s status: “We are a beacon of freedom in a world that is clouded with too much tyranny and oppression.” The reason why I was taken aback by this sentence is because Governor Herbert, along with Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes, has been fighting same-sex marriage in the state ever since U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby declared Utah’s ban on same-sex marriage as being unconstitutional. Governor Herbert probably does not think he is being tyrannical or that he is oppressing the homosexual community, but let’s be frank, denying a person’s right to marriage is oppressing their freedom and liberty.
Governor Herbert received quite a bit of blow-back due to his July 4th statement. Out of the 80 comments he received on his status, approximately 70 of them were critical of his stance on same-sex marriage. Many of the commentators took him to task on his comments about “freedom,” “tyranny,” and “oppression.” To sum up the commentators, Governor Herbert was being hypocritical. He touts the freedom that this country gives its citizens but then fights against marriage equality. Many people, including myself, see Governor Herbert as an oppressor. His statement is quite tone deaf.
Within the small group of support that Governor Herbert received, one comment stood out:
This supporter was upset that people were using the Independence Day holiday to criticize the governor. This person wanted people to “find another time to be critical.” However, this supporter was not the only person who suggested that Americans should not criticize the government or politicians on Independence Day. I saw comments from stories linking from the Drudge Report, Fox News, CNN, Facebook, and other sites that suggested that Americans should celebrate the 4th and leave criticisms for another day. People that were protesting, criticizing, or complaining about America and its policies were being "unpatriotic" and "un-American." This is blind patriotism. Blind patriotism is where people cheer on everything American, not wanting to discuss any of the country’s faults. They tell people not to criticize anything or anyone, even if it is only for one day.
I consider it blind patriotism because this is a level of ignorance that does a great disservice to this country because we are taking the proverbial broom and sweeping our problems under the rug. America is wonderful! Praise America! Never criticize it or its policies. Blind patriots assume that if you criticize government policy (which happens to be policies they support) then you are un-American. You Occupy Wall Street protesters, you protest capitalism, you must hate America. People in the Tea Party, you protest government spending, you must hate America. Just because people complain about or criticize the government does not mean they are un-American and they hate America. You can be critical of the country you reside in and still love and appreciate it. If anything, these people who protest, complain, and criticize the government are the people whom truly care about this nation. Which leads to the other head-scratcher in the above comment, "the greatest threat to our nation lies with citizens who no longer care; who can only criticize." Ummmm....I guess if you do not praise America then you "no longer care" about the state of the country? I would say any citizen that takes the time to discuss (and complain) about the country would mean that they do care. They love this country so much that it kills them to see the direction we are headed in. They have to step in and do (or say) something to make sure America is living up to its potential. This seems to be something that blind patriots do not get.
Blind love of country actually undermines the entire reason why America celebrates Independence Day. Independence Day is America’s birthday. It is America’s birthday because the American colonialists stood up against the tyranny and the oppression of the British monarchy. Our nation was founded on dissent, protest, and disobedience. For any one American to tell another American to shut up and not complain on Independence Day is appalling. The blind patriot has no clue what the holiday is all about.
Independence Day has a history of being contentious. If blind patriots do not want to hear or see any dissent, protests, or any other thing that would constitute as being critical of America on Independence Day then they should not look into our history any further. A blind patriot would have hated this speech that Frederick Douglass gave in 1852, entitled The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro:
“My subject, then, fellow-citizens, is American slavery. I shall see this day and its popular characteristics from the slave's point of view. Standing there identified with the American bondman, making his wrongs mine, I do not hesitate to declare, with all my soul, that the character and conduct of this nation never looked blacker to me than on this 4th of July! Whether we turn to the declarations of the past, or to the professions of the present, the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting. America is false to the past, false to the present, and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future.”
Douglass’ speech was passionate and quite critical of the United States, which it should have been. My God! Slavery is a huge and disgusting blemish on America’s past. But, I guess, as our blind patriot above mentioned, Douglass should have had “humble gratitude” in regards to Independence Day and should have not exercised his “vain ego.” How dare Douglass take a sacred holiday like Independence Day and complain about America. He should have been grateful that he was here in America and should have not talked about slavery. It was time to celebrate America. Petty personal matters (that affected the entire African-American community) should not have been brought up on such a special day.
That sounds insane, right? Of course it is. If any individual or group is feeling oppressed, they have every right to sound off on their oppression, no matter the day. Governor Herbert made a tone-deaf statement about freedom and oppression on a day that celebrates our ancestors rising up against oppression and tyranny. He made that statement while he is currently denying the rights of loving LGBT couples from forming a family. He is oppressing his people in his state. The government of Utah knows better! Consenting adults have no business deciding on what legal union they want to form. Herbert has decided that he wants to tell people how to live, so it is only natural that some of his citizens would rise up and criticize him for making such blanket statements on a day that promotes liberty and freedom.
Even if you do not agree with the marriage equality movement, you should at least acknowledge the rights that people are afforded under the First Amendment. Do not shoot people down on a day that was founded on dissent, disobedience, and protest. That action is downright un-American. If you want to thank Governor Herbert or any other politician on Independence Day for the rights that you have, please go right ahead. But to suggest that other people should shut up because it ruins your holiday is in direct conflict with the spirit of Independence Day. You need to reassess what you know about the holiday. Independence Day has nothing to do with obedience.
America was born out of contention and dissent. I want to encourage as many people as possible, that have a legitimate issue with American or state policy (even the people with whom I disagree), to go out on the 4th of July and protest. I want them to make their voices heard. There is nothing more American than protest and dissent. That is something that would truly fit the meaning of our Independence Day holiday.
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