Constitution Day and Citizenship Day: What Does It Mean To Be An Active Citizen?

 President Barack Obama issued a proclamation on September 17, 2013 commemorating the signing of the Constitution on that day in 1787.  In the proclamation, the President talked about how our constitution has inspired nations to demand control of their own destinies; how immigrants have embraced the spirit of liberty, equality, and justice for all and that the pursuit of this promise defines our history.  But most important, the President designated September 17th as "Constitution Day and Citizenship Day," and asked us, as Americans, to reflect on what it meant to be an "active" citizen.

I’m feeling very conflicted at this moment and it's so interesting feeling so conflicted.  Why would I feel so conflicted talking about what active citizenship means to me?  Well, I suppose that's because by way of recent events in our country and our long contradictory historical arc, active citizenship begs a sort of cynicism that would not be there if one truly believed that one could be an "active" citizen without dire consequences.

I've have always been an active citizen and have cherished that role.  That was how I was brought up.  But I've always paid a very dear price for being active. We can claim to be a society that welcomes debate and differences, but from my experience debate as long as it's muted and differences as long as there is no real objective acceptance of them.  That's where it seems disingenuous and cynical.

My parents were both civil rights activists, taught us to read and write at a very young age, taught us the ins and outs of being black children; but bottom line, instilled in fire in our young bellies and a penchant for truth, justice and equality. My resolve was to dedicate my life to truth, to making sure that people did understand what was going on in our country, and what was being done in our country's name.

I mentioned earlier recent events.  And recent events DO have an effect on how one looks at active citizen participation.  Trayvon Martin.  Edward Snowden.  Drones.  The Tea Party.  The 50^th anniversary of the March on Washington.  Attica. The assassination of Malcolm X, Martin L. King Jr., Bobby Kennedy.  Gun violence and the mass shooting of 20 young children in Sandy Hook. Hypocrisy on both the left and the right.  And here we are, many years later, and the old cliché: the more things change, the more they remain the same still seems to be the mantra of the day. To be active means to take a stand.  To comment on all that one sees, knowing that you may be maligned, lose your job, not be protected as a whistleblower, and maybe even killed.  That is the price one pays for being truly active.  And guess what?  Most don’t want to take that path and most don’t even know that they have made that choice, partly because they have been socialized in our opulent society that material goods, excess and pretending that there is not an elephant in the room is an easier path or life to live.  And our society simultaneously asks for active participation and rewards one for not being active at the same time. 

It takes a lot of courage to not get discouraged, to know, as many fine intellectuals have said, that what you believe in, what you are dedicating your life to, what you are working for passionately, you will never see in your lifetime.  But that should not be a reason to stop. It should be the reason why you are motivated to keep being an “active” citizen, seeking real truths that lie out there in the foggy landscape known as America.

You see, the real argument here is that a clever distraction occurs when one is an active citizen because it allows those who have no desire to challenge the status quo to cover up what the real arguments are.  That is because all the real arguments, all the other problems one exposes by being active are all tainted and painted with the same brush.  And when that happens, the next "distraction" is not far behind.  The real distractions are the ones that are below the surface, the racism, sexism, ageism, poverty, environmental degradation and class warfare. Until subtext issues (distractions) are addressed, we will flail about, lost, trying to find our way, and continually use these same distractions to walk backwards into the future.

Is this the price we pay or want to pay for being active? Is that what we want as a country?  I'm sure there are people that would be just fine with that.  I'm not one of them.  And I will continue to celebrate my “activism,” speaking the truth and telling it like it is.

Largest Gun Study Ever: More Guns, More Murder

Largest Gun Study Ever: More Guns, More Murder: The largest study of gun violence in the United States, released Thursday afternoon, confirms a point that should be obvious: widespread American gun ownership is fueling America's gun violence epidemic.