The Star Spangled Banner is on a short list of songs that every American knows, even if they just get into the chorus, belting out the rhetorical question we’ve all heard a million times “oh, say, does that star spangled banner still wave.” Nearly every public event, especially those in the sporting world, start with a performance of the tune.
I have often wondered why we sing the song so much. Sure, it has vivid imagery, recounting the battle for Fort McHenry in 1814, but where in the song does it talk about the things that make America actually great? Where does it mention the Bill of Rights? The Preamble? Where’s the Chevy, the levee, the whiskey and rye?
The short answer is nowhere. The song, like so many other things in our cultural zeitgeist, has become a symbol and taken on a completely new meaning far more abstract than the lyrics would indicate. Hearing the tune is a soft indication that whatever is happening in the world, this is still America.
Unfortunately, that means a lot of different things to different people. For a lot of people, it means they are free, free to say what they want, do what they want—to a degree—and free to achieve anything they want.
For other people, it is a reminder of institutions that systemically fail them. It is a symbol of politicians who do not represent their interests. Our country has deeply engrossed problems, and the national anthem only serves to drag those problems squirming into the light of day before a striped man blows his whistle to signal the game has started.
Colin Kaepernick, the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, shook the hornet’s nest when he sat out the national anthem a few weeks ago. This act was met with sharp criticism from fellow athletes, politicians and media members. However, the criticism was largely misplaced. Kaepernick’s naysayers were far too focused on what he was doing instead of asking themselves why his actions were so offensive.
His actions offended because they were dissident. Kaepernick stepped outside the realm of socially acceptable behavior, except the ones who determine what is and is not acceptable are us, all of us. He disrespected the country directly, and if there is anything Americans hate, it is feeling disrespected.
Patriotism so often in this country succumbs to nationalism, a dangerous degree of loving one’s country to the point that it can do no wrong.
America is an imperfect beast of a nation, but whenever someone tries to point out the flaws, they are shouted down and accused of hating the infallible Founding Fathersland. This establishes a cultural fear of speaking out against society and makes the jump between nationalism and fascism.
A healthy dose of skepticism is crucial for any society, but it is the lifeblood of our country. Those same founding fathers gave us the ability to ask questions, to challenger the status quo and to change society. The Constitution is bendable because it was always ment to be changed and improved upon.
I find it hard to believe Colin Kaepernick hates America, just like I find it hard to believe the journalists of Charlie Hebdo hated Islam. Symbols, while important, should never get in the way of decent human beings asking themselves hard questions, and I do believe most people are basically decent, at the very least.
Decency often compels people to silence rather than action, and that is the real tragedy of a cultural reliance on symbols. Too many are content with following the first loud voice they hear, and before long, everyone is doing the same thing with no real notion of why.
Colin Kaepernick asked himself why he should stand for the anthem when to him it only represented dark aspects of society, and for that act of civic defiance, he should be applauded.
The next time you hear that old anthem, I encourage you to ask yourself what it means to you. Are you standing because you love this country? Are you teary eyed because you are close to the military? Do the words ring so true in your soul that your hat might blow off your head if it was not already over your heart? Do you stand up because everyone else is?
Figure out your reasons then look around and consider why everyone else is standing. What aspects of their life compels their patriotism? What does this song mean to everyone else?
These are the things we need to wonder about each other in order to understand one another. Welcome to the melting pot, America the beautiful.
