Thread by @DrTedJ

Lots of folks in my neighborhood fly American flags, some of which are often snarled on poles. As a retired military guy, esp today on the Fourth of July, my first instinct is to straighten the flags out. As a black man, I dare not set a foot on someone’s property to do so.

And so it is that the symbols that should highlight our shared values have been hijacked to divide us - all for political expedience. When the people are encouraged to demonize one another, all of us are cheated out of the nation we want.

nytimes.com/2021/07/03/nyr…

Independence Day is a reminder of both the Promise of America, and the vast work that remains to live up to it.

Since its inception, nothing has threatened the American experiment like racism. Nothing.

Our country is both 1) not beyond critique & 2) worthy of our sacrifices. Its symbols shouldn’t be a proxy for partisan affiliation, or so consecrated that they mean more than Americans themselves or the rights it symbolizes.
Black America has known this nytimes.com/2020/11/18/mag…

Nothing about our nation is inevitable.

The Fourth is a chance to reflect on the choices - both terrible & revolutionary - the nation has made. And a chance to confront the challenge of racial injustice & commit to better choices… to choose solidarity.
groveatlantic.com/book/when-the-…