[It’s impossible to think about our ongoing 250th anniversary without engaging with the frustratingly Trumptastic American250 Commission. And so, after a weeklong blog series AmericanStudying 1776 histories, for this weekend post I turn to those current events and the questions of both politics and collective memories that they present.]
On three ways to challenge the mythologizing, misremembering, and MAGA madness characterizing America at our 250th.
- Metaphors: I’ll always be a English professor at heart, and so that means I’ve got a serious soft spot for a good metaphor. I’m not sure there’s ever been a more striking and apt one in American public life than the ongoing Reflecting Pool nonsense: Trump decided he wanted to paint that iconic DC landmark blue for the 250th because of the usual jackassclownery; he hired the company of a Mar-a-Lago buddy with no relevant experience or skills and they thoroughly fucked everything up; he then blamed the resulting chaos and destruction on vandals and terrorists, going so far as to arrest a former U.S. Olympian; and ultimately one of our most sacred shared spots is in utter shambles as we celebrate this historic occasion. (I could hyperlink all those details, but they’re depressing as hell, and I trust you to find further info if you want.) And honestly, I think a big reason why this particular story has hit so hard for so many folks is that it presents such a perfect metaphor for the incompetence, corruption, lies, and buffoonery at the core of this administration. Let’s keep making and amplifying such symbolic meanings whenever we can, and most definitely here on the 250th!
- Critical Patriotism: Tempting as it is to entirely focus on such reflections of our worst, however, it remains hugely important to find and lean into examples of our best, of the fight to live up to our shared, foundational, enduring and evolving, ideals. I was honored to be asked by my friend Ed Simon to contribute a piece on American critical patriotism to his wonderful new Pittsburgh Review of Books, and hope you’ll check that essay out as it, and more exactly and especially the figures and texts on which I focus in it, models this vital form of collective expression and activism. In an otherwise thoughtful new article (an interview with the awesome Bryan Stevenson) the often-frustrating pundit Ezra Klein argued that “There has been a severing of American history into two visions: one that can only see glory and one that can only see suffering and sin.” I get that, but I think it misses, as folks so often do, the powerful combination comprised by critical patriotism. We can’t fight for our best in any genuine or productive way until and unless we engage with our best, and that’s a vital project for the 250th and beyond.
- Get to Work: It can’t be the only such project, though (and neither can making metaphors); we’ve also got to find ways to put in the collective work on the ground. The countless local celebrations and commemorations for the 250th have been one great example of such grounded work, and I’ve loved learning about them. But the work will have to go on long after this specific occasion has passed, and so I want to share a wonderful new resource that Vaughn has added to this website: her latest Resources page, on Effecting Change: Policy & Advocacy. I certainly believing that adding to our collective memories and conversations represents an important form of public scholarly work, and it’s the kind I pursue most consistently to be sure. But there are all kinds of ways through which we can also advocate at the political and policy levels, and Vaughn has compiled some great advice and starting points on that page. Y’all know the Framers would approve!
Next series starts Monday,
Ben
PS. What do you think?
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