Why I Didn’t Stand for “God Bless America”:
My Awkward Dance with Patriotism
July 4, 2004The Reverend Anne Felton Hines
It was six months after the attacks on the World Trade Center, and I received an e-mail from the president of the Interfaith Council of South Orange County, asking if any of us on the Board could suggest who might lead the Pledge of Allegiance at our upcoming Interfaith Prayer Breakfast. I wrote back, “At the risk of sounding unpatriotic – which I am not -- why do we need the Pledge of Allegiance? This is a prayer breakfast.” He replied that “in light of 9/11,” it would be appropriate to include the Pledge at the breakfast. I didn’t argue. I didn’t know this group very well, and I didn’t feel like taking on this issue with strangers.
The morning of the breakfast arrived, and I dragged myself to it at 7:30 in the morning. Despite the early hour, I had been looking forward to the event, as the family of Amy Biehl – the young human rights activist who had been murdered in South Africa – was to speak about their work of reconciliation in that country.
But I was surprised – and a bit uncomfortable -- when I arrived to see that every table was decorated with bouquets of red, white and blue flowers; again, this was a prayer breakfast promoting religious unity, not a patriotic rally. But again, I put my discomfort aside.
The program began with prayers by leaders of a variety of faith groups – Catholic, Mormon, Hindu, Muslim and Jewish – each giving thanks to their God for this gathering, and calling for love and understanding. And then the entertainment began – presented by the All-American Boys Choir.
And they were pretty good. They sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” and included a stunning performance of Cesar Franck’s “Panis Angelicus.” And I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised when they concluded the set with “America, the Beautiful,” preceded by a very sappy story of their visit to the former Soviet Union “before the fall of Communism.” I realized then, as I listened to everyone in the room applaud wildly, that not only did I feel uncomfortable, I felt very much alone.
Fortunately, however, I wasn’t disappointed by the presentation by Amy Biehl’s mother and brother, who described their journey to forgiveness of Amy’s murderers, and showed us a video about the amazing work they had accomplished in South Africa; I doubt there was a dry eye in the house. The message of the Biehls was one of international harmony, unity and reconciliation; it was a message of love and hope.
Yet immediately following their talk, the Boys Choir returned to the stage, and we were all asked to stand and join them in singing, “God Bless America.” And that was the last straw for me; I simply couldn’t do it. I could not sing a song that, as far as I was concerned, encourages American chauvinism and a lack of international harmony and reconciliation. I just couldn’t do it. And so I remained seated and silent.
Now, perhaps I should admit here that I do have a history of not always joining in on gestures of patriotism. When I was in Kindergarten, a classmate complained one day to our teacher that I hadn’t joined in on the Pledge of Allegiance. The entire class had to recite it over again, just so I could say it with them. But while I’d like to say that my failure to recite the Pledge was in protest of the creeping McCarthyism in the country, I suspect I was simply daydreaming. It definitely wasn’t in protest of the “under God” portion of the Pledge, since that hadn’t even been added yet!
But years later I did begin consciously refusing to say the Pledge of Allegiance, out of protest for what I saw as our government’s cruel support of dictators and death squads in Central America, and the hypocrisy we displayed in our blind fight against Communism. Though I had protested many things before that – the brutality of racial segregation, our war in Vietnam, and the growing poverty in America, our actions in Central America in the 1980s had put me over the edge, and I could no longer pledge my allegiance to the flag of our country.
It’s not that I don’t love this country of ours; I do. I love the principles of freedom and justice on which it was founded. But because of those principles, I do hold us to a higher standard. And I believe that we have failed those standards over and over again – in our hostility towards the poor, our preferential treatment of the rich, our continuing discrimination of people of color and of sexual minorities, our concern for oil and other corporate wealth over environmental and human safety, and our growing militarism around the world. And I believe deeply that it is my duty as an American to challenge those failures.
But I have felt most discouraged – disheartened -- since the attacks of 9/11, when the American people began buying into a rhetoric of blind patriotism -- waving flags, posting “United We Stand” signs, and singing “God Bless America” at every opportunity – never questioning the tactics of the so-called “war on terrorism” which was quickly developing.
I think what bothered me the most in our early response to those attacks was the lack of self-accountability. When the question would arise, “Why do they hate us so much?”, the response always given by our leaders was, “Because we stand for freedom and democracy.” Never were we encouraged to take an honest look at ourselves – at our materialism; at our misuse of resources; at the way we hold ourselves above the rest of the world, insisting that treaties and laws that apply to other nations do not apply to us; at our support of Israel, no matter what it does; and eventually, at our decision to declare war on Iraq, despite the lack of support from most of the world. Never did we acknowledge that while there can be no justification for the violence the terrorists dealt us that day, there might just be a justification for their rage.
You may have seen the Commentary in Friday’s L.A. Times written by an anonymous former senior counterintelligence official at the CIA, who points out that instead of acknowledging such justification, our leaders have interpreted Islamic hatred for us as a “communication problem,” and have tried to remedy the problem by calling on Madison Avenue for a public relations campaign. We keep assuming that they just don’t understand America, despite the fact that polls taken in Muslim countries find “that Muslims hate America for our actions,” but broadly support “the ideas and beliefs that make us who we are.”
As one of my favorite columnists, Steve Lopez, pointed out several months after 9/11: “…much of the world sees us as the fat kid at a birthday party, stuffing cake into our mouth while everyone else dives for the crumbs.”
But our nation has chosen to ignore that reality. How can I sing “God Bless America” in the face of such arrogance?
How can I ask God to “bless America” after what we’ve done to the people of Iraq, and perhaps worst of all, to our own American soldiers – many of whom joined the military because they couldn’t make much of a living in civilian life? Never did they expect to be risking their lives in a war against a tiny country whose only real weapon – as powerful as it has proven to be – is terrorism – a weapon for which we have little defense.
And to add insult to injury, we the public are not allowed to see the over 800 coffins arriving home, containing the bodies of dead American soldiers who have been killed in this war, or the many hundreds more soldiers who have been injured. The horrors of a war that was declared ended over a year ago remain hidden from us, perhaps in hopes that we won’t begin questioning the validity of it.
How can I stand and sing “God Bless America” in light of the Patriot Act, and other acts of this Administration, which allow for incredible abuses of our fundamental rights as citizens, and the rights of non-citizens as well – all in the name of the “war on terrorism.” Thank goodness for the sanity of the Supreme Court last week when they ended the Administration’s practice of detaining indefinitely hundreds of foreign nationals at Guantanamo Bay, with no charges and no access to attorneys. But I have been stunned that the government of this country – this “land of the free” – would even attempt such policies.
Now, to be completely honest, I would feel a lot better if anyone who looks or acts like a terrorist would be locked up indefinitely, and I don’t care if they have an attorney or not. I want their homes searched, their computers invaded, their phones tapped. I’m as scared and angry as the next person every time some fanatic blows him or herself up and kills innocents along with them.
But the beauty and power of our American system, as guaranteed by our Constitution, is that my fears and my outrage aren’t what guide us; the Bill of Rights is – or at least, that’s what is supposed to be our guide. That’s the gift that the early patriots of America handed on to us, and it is precious. Do we not owe it to them to protect that gift?
How can I sing “God Bless America” after learning of the terrible brutalities at the Abu Graib prison – the full story of which we have only begun to uncover? Or after reading that the photos of the statue of Saddam Hussein being toppled were staged as a publicity gimmick; that the statue was not brought down by Iraqi citizens as the photos implied, but by our own soldiers?! They even attempted to drape an American flag over the statue, but wisely dropped that idea when the Iraqi citizens present insisted on using their country’s flag instead.
What has happened to our values as a country?
My American Heritage Dictionary defines Patriotism as, “Love, support and defense of one’s country.” It defines Nationalism, on the other hand, as, “Devotion to the interests of a particular nation; or …emphasizing national goals versus international goals.” Given those definitions, I would suggest that what we have witnessed so loudly expressed across this country since 9/11 is not Patriotism, but a dangerous Nationalism, fueled by fear and anger; and as Americans and as Unitarian Universalists, we must always be concerned when decisions are grounded in such emotions.
And so, given those same definitions, I will declare myself to be a patriot, and will manifest that patriotism through challenging my political leaders when necessary, and through witnessing for justice and peace. For it is this country that I love. It is to this country that I gladly pay my taxes in order to support it. And it is the ideals of this country, as stated in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, which I will loudly and proudly defend, for they are also the ideals of Unitarian Unitarianism.
But our Faith also “affirms…the goal of a world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;” and reminds us that all people everywhere are part of one large, “interdependent web of Creation.”
Therefore, let us raise our voices in hope that our God not only “bless America,” but also the countries of Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, and every nation of the world.
Let us pray that the Spirit of Life bless our soldiers and their families; but may we pray as well for the blessing of the soldiers of other countries – even those we name our enemy.
Let us call on the Holy Spirit to bless our political leaders, and guide them to more just and compassionate decisions. But may the Holy Spirit also bless the families protesting the war in Iraq, in spite of having sons and daughters, husbands and wives, serving and even dying there.
May Love shed its Grace on all of us, but may it also embrace people everywhere – no matter who they are, no matter what they have done. For it is only through the power of Love that the Eternal is known; it is only through Love that all the creatures of the earth will become one.
I cannot yet bring myself to sing “God Bless America” because it feels too limiting. But there is another patriotic song that I can sing. And so I invite you now to stand, as you are willing and able, and join me in singing, “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee,” as a reminder of the values we hold so dear, and the America we passionately defend.
© 2004 Anne Felton Hines. All rights reserved.
