@aud @PaulDitz @julieofthespirits

"The mythologizing of the U.S. past is actively harmful"

This . We can't improve our country without acknowledging its harmful past and its origin in racism and colonialism. Any political approach that relies on silencing the history of repression in the US is bound to repeat mistakes.

In addition, pretending that the country has always been great and perfect (aka nationalism) is invalidating to the many, many people and groups who have fought (and are still fighting) to make this place better. The fact that the US has made ANY progress over its history is a testament to the blood, sweat and tears of countless people throwing themselves into the machine and fighting it in every way possible.

Our country's past is a mixed bag and is full of both heinous crimes against humanity and touching moments of inspiration. We need to know the bad parts and learn from the good parts in equal measure in order to move forward.

So yes this is who we are as a country, but not who we *all* are and not who we want to be. We should learn from those who fought before us so we can continue their fight. The US is not great and never was. But we can still keep trying to get it there one step at a time.