America was built on our abilities to get along with each other. There will be things we do not totally agree with. However, we should allow respect for our country and others be priorities before we choose actions that could be held in disesteem.
Every single thing in this earth is tainted from the flag and beyond because it was made by broken people. Still, we must treat our country and people as the living revisionists we are. America is a walking work of art. America is a self-fix-it system and we must stand for that. We are the people of this system, nobody else. We cannot conduct ourselves to be defiant to a great nation that is already living by each citizen’s will.
The flag stands for the opportunity we have to make a change through the channels on the Stars and Stripes of our banner. There will always be something someone is ‘anti-‘ for yet we should not brush-off America’s patriotic ideals. Our national anthem is accepted by people of every color and was adopted through our republic. It is an official national symbol and it should not be put in disrepute at any time. The third verse in the song is not sung because it could be offensive to some people.
People like my fraternity brother Colin Kaepernick can take actions to improve America but we must hold a high opinion of our official traditions. We can self-fix America through our own initiatives: that’s why we are in a democracy where our thoughts have places of value. There are improvements needed to be made in every aspect of life and this land of the free gives us the opportunity.
We should not look at the flag, anthem, and other symbols as symbols of perfections, but as pathmarkers to a better America. Being obedient to standing up for the national anthem and silence during the moment of silence doesn’t mean you agree with everything that is going on in this country. It means you care enough about the institutions you are a part of to keep their values dear in your heart.
You may not agree with your pastor, but that doesn’t mean you sit down the whole worship service. You may disagree with your university, but that doesn’t mean you don’t cooperate with the singing of its alma mater. We need to put country before self. You can work for equality, but you must not lose the dignity of true patriotism. You must honor America, which gives you the chance to have more individuality than any country in the world.
Jordan Thomas Cooper is a 2015 graduate of the University of South Carolina with a degree in History and a 2010 graduate of the RealEstate School of Success in Irmo. He is the first African-American to serve in both the governor and lieutenant governor’s office as an aide and first to serve in the Inspector General’s Office in S.C. (Haley) He is also the first person to serve in the top three offices in the gubernatorial line of succession in South Carolina (Haley, Bauer, McConnell). He says research shows he is the second black presidential campaign speechwriter in American history and the first for a GOP presidential campaign (Bush 2015). He also played football for Coach Steve Spurrier.