We are America

On July 4, 1776, the Founders of our nation declared that they were done living under a capricious, malicious king.

These slave-holding white men were far from the ideal that they crafted for our country. They were the picture of “freedom for me but not for thee.” Nonetheless, the ideals they laid down became the foundation that we’ve been building on ever since. We’ve been building an edifice of freedom, and expanding it to house everyone and not just white straight men, for more than two centuries.

The radical right wing wants to tear that historic edifice down to its eighteenth-century foundations, and for generations they have dressed themselves in our flag to disguise their motivations. They claim that they are the only “real Americans” and the rest of us are not.

We are America. We all are America. In all our skin colors, we are America. In all our origins, we are America. In all our faiths, we are America. In all our genders, we are America. In all our beautiful diversity, we are America. In freedom, and only in freedom, we are America.

As Americans, our work is to protect and fortify the freedoms we have built over 248 years. That work continues today, tomorrow, this November, every election, and every day in between. Let us recommit ourselves to upholding those ideals of freedom today and every day.