10/4/2017 – The American Flag

The American Flag

Since Herr Trump’s election, to the Office of President nine months ago, he continues to gives evidence to the American people and, the world he is who he says he is. Herr Trump told us who he was at the beginning of his campaign when he started to demean the press and demonized the process of informing the people of its checks on business and government for the purpose of balance. His first move was to distort the truth in preparation for the infinite number of lies to come. Herr Trump is a liar and one of the most dangerous types – habitual. Habitual liars are only focused on what is best for them by any means necessary. With that being said, I will move forward, I’m sure you can connect the dots to other behaviors that verify the truth as to what he is.

What does the American flag mean to people? To really answer the question it would depend on who you are, more directly what’s your race. The American flag is directly tied to the continuous struggles for freedom. The European colonist decided they wanted freedom from taxation without representation from the European Empire of England thus the American Revolution (1765-1783). It is important to understand that England was a Monarchy system of government. People were distinguished to be better than others by title (name) and fortune.

Note: Chalk and Jonassohn: “Historically and anthropologically peoples have always had a name for themselves. In a great many cases, that name meant ‘the people’ to set the owners of that name off against all other people who were considered of lesser quality in some way. If the differences between the people and some other society were particularly large in terms of religion, language, manners, customs, and so on, then such others were seen as less than fully human: pagans, savages, or even animals.”

Also important to note, the colonies all 13 legally owned slaves and had done so for 156 years since the first introduction of 19 Africans bought from the Dutch from a Spanish vessel into the American colony of Virginia in 1619. European Americans, Africans American slaves, freed African Americans and indigenous people fought during the American Revolution. The freedom won from England however, did not extend to all who fought and died. In fact, under the same flag of freedom slavery constitutionally existed for another 100 years. I dare say that one might conclude the African Americans and indigenous participants didn’t embrace the meaning of the flag the same as those of European American decent.

Most notable, during the period 1492 and 1865 European Americans dominated all manner of commerce and development confiscating all valuable sources of wealth, land, gold, silver, ore, waterways, and human beings in addition to, methods of travel and distribution. The gun was used to enforce and indoctrinate the culture of white supremacy for the purpose to total domination of the indigenous people and well as the African people. As the Europeans progressed, they legally restricted the indigenous and African people to any access to progress and wealth.
It was illegal to provide the basic reading and writing skills to slaves and only provided to the indigenous people to further the European control and domination.
Note:
Since the founding of the United States, when the right to vote was restricted to white men of property, professor Leland T. Saito of USCwrites: “Throughout the history of the United States race has been used by whites for legitimizing and creating difference and social, economic and political exclusion.” The Naturalization Act of 1790 limited U.S. citizenship to whites only.

The Civil War (1861 – 1865), introduced another flag that of the Confederate States of American consisting of 7 southern states that seceded from America in opposition to the abolishment of slavery. The Confederate Flag vs The American Flag, under both flags African Americans and indigenous people fought and died. Between 620,000 – 750.000 soldiers died, along with unnumbered civilians more than all previous wars combined. The Confederates maintained a white supremacy ideology, which was solidified in maintaining Human Beings as property. Note: Wikipedia – White Supremacy:

The outbreak of the Civil War saw the desire of the confederacy to uphold white supremacy being cited as a cause for state secession.

The Civil War concluded with the American flag being the official flag of the United States of American, however, the white supremacy ideology and the confederate flag did not die with the ending of the Civil War. The ideology of white supremacy and the desire to legally establish European American White men as superior and the flag of the Confederacy lives on to this day.

The many numerous wars that followed WW1, WW2, Korea, Vietnam, Gulf War, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Somalia, and all others were and are being fought under the American Flag the symbol of freedom. I am a Vietnam era veteran and as I did and all Servicemen salute the flag and pledge to defend the United States from both foreign and domestic enemies. In the 60’s, African Americans felt very positive with respects to progress, although African Americans had been and were being killed for peacefully advocating for equality or just being killed by lynching’s, burning, castrations with continued restriction to access. The death of Medgar Even-Williams an African American Voting Rights Activist from Mississippi, who was struck down in his driveway in 1963 by and assassins bullet sparked a movement. The movement garnered the support of John F. Kennedy and he was struck down by an assassin’s bullet. My senior year of High School the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was enacted under the Lyndon Johnson administration. Presumably, a step forwards far the Nation.

During the period of my enlistment, the South Vietnamese were seeking relief from oppression from the North Vietnamese. During this same period, African Americans were seeking relief from oppression from the United States of America. While serving in Vietnam (1967 -1969) in the Mekong Delta, I began to think seriously about who was my real enemy. In 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King and Senator Robert F. Kennedy both were assassinated both advocates of the Civil Rights Act o 1965. The same flag that was being flown in Vietnam where we were fighting the North Vietnamese was the same flag that was being flown in cities in America where African American people and their supporters were being killed and attacked under the same flag I was defending. For the first time, I saw the flag in a different way.

News from America filtered in slowly Armed Forces Radio our only new source; I don’t believe I ever heard any news related to the racial unrest in America on Armed Forces Radio. After one year in Vietnam, I received 30 days of leave in 1968 with six months remaining on my second tour. Upon stepping on American soil, I saw both the American Flag flying along side the Confederate flag from Travis Air Force Base to the conclusion of my leave in Ohio. Throughout cities across America with regards to African Americans freedom struggles there was a push back with violence against the people protesting for rights granted in the Constitution of the United States of Americans. Here, I had to return to Vietnam to fight to relieve the oppression of Vietnamese people and my people 10,000 miles away were peacefully fighting for relief from American oppression. I stopped saluting the flag upon my honorable discharge from the United States Navy in 1970.

We have been deceived and lied to throughout history about equality and freedom as it relates to patriotism and the flag. As, I stated earlier it would depend on who you’d ask: (what does the flag mean to them} and what flag are you talking about the American Flag or the Confederate Flag. I can only speak for myself. The flag is just one symbol of America’s hypocrisies related to patriotism and the flag. The truth is the United States Constitution when written all rights therein were extended to only white American men. That means everybody else was excluded. Over time different versions of inclusiveness of others with amendments, polices, treaties, laws, regulations etc. have been offered as evidence of European American White men’s sincerity, however the actions of the administrators have proven to be ineffective and frankly cruel in many instances. The Constitution is a piece of paper and the flag is a piece of cloth. White European Americans men (White Supremacist) wrote the Constitution and established norms they associate with solidarity to it and both flags regardless of race.

What we have is a Nation founded and built on lies seeded with the ideology of White Supremacy. The election of 2016 brought White supremacy to the White House in the form of perhaps the “very very best” habitual liar ever born Herr Trump. The country is certainly divided and always has. Herr Trump represents at a minimum 37 million white supremacy growing in numbers since the Civil War. Republicans control all powers of the federal government. Of the two major political parties, they express more of a white supremacist ideology. The House of Representatives are in lock step with Herr Thump and the Senate is just a step behind. What is clear white supremacy is alive and their agenda is being pushed forward. Herr Trump is not the most pressing problem. I don’t believe he will survive his elected 4-year turn. Moreover, America has reached a change point and our focus must be on the truth. White Supremacy has moved to the forefront of America. They’re our neighbors, policemen, fireman, teacher, pastors, priest, actors, politicians, doctors, lawyers, real-estate giants, and their numbers at a minimum 37 million strong. They have catapulted themselves into the mainstream of American politics and government. How will the nation respond to this reality?

As, far as the flags, it’s up to you stand, kneel, hold arms or whatever, it’s your Constitutional Right to do either and I will defend to the death my right and your right to choose. It’s not the Constitution or the American flag that’s a problem the problem lays squarely at the feet of those elected to enforce it inclusive of all Americans from the beginning moreover, right now.

WSM
10/4/2017