RE: July 4th

signs by Signal Return | Detroit, MI

RE: july 4th

“Every moment in history is as complex as the moment we’re living in right now” -heard in part five of the podcast, Seeing White.

Sometimes we find ourselves trying to make light of historical wrongs by saying, “it was different back then” ...“that’s the way things were” ...”it was easier to ignore these issues in those times”...“people didn’t know better”...

There’s a lot I’m disgusted by that’s deeply rooted in our nation’s history. Trying to muster up some pride for U.S.A. this past weekend wasn’t on the docket for me personally. What I’m taking time to more fully appreciate is the learning and unlearning happening right now: we really can’t turn a blind eye or use excuses like “it was different back then” to okay the injustices embedded in America. 2020 has been a year in which our country’s bones have been exposed. We might not be able to change the origin story, but we sure as heck can change the outcomes for the future. And that’s that kind of patriotism I can be grateful for: the freedom to truly examine the flaws in our country and to commit (again and again) to making it better.
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🔝: letterpress posters Signal Return