Monitoring of America

I keep wondering, “what is the real soul of America”? There are 330 million of us who live here. Clearly, there are multiple universes spread across the country from the South to the East to the Right to the Left to Suburban to Rural to Urban.

There was a point in our nation when we could agree to disagree; where did that go? Banning books to keep children uneducated about our country’s past fuels the fire of anger and strife. Is it fear of knowledge?

We chose to raise our kids in downtown NYC in a diverse environment where their education cast a broad net of information. Hiding history or controversial books was not part of the curriculum.

Today, 50% of Generation Z believe that gender binary is outdated, and 15% consider themselves LGBTQ+. That seems like a big disconnect from some parents wanting to ban Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin or The Color Purple by Alice Walker.

More than likely, in the 1800s, there were 15% of people who were gay, but it was hidden away in a closet making many unhappy because they couldn’t be honest about their lives. As a nation, we have divorce, mental health issues, domestic violence, bigotry, prejudice, misogyny, gay parents, single parents, and much more. These things will never go away, but understanding them will make for a better world in the generations to come.

Americans have this idea that we are “the best,” but this behavior is only doing one thing, holding back reality. Is it an older nation holding us back? Is it fear of losing power? Is it people foisting their ideals on others?

I always think of Oreos when it comes to secrets. Suppose you raise your children, keeping them from knowing about Oreos (obviously Oreos is just an analogy to anything delicious), at one point. In that case, they will venture out on their own and have that Oreo at someone else’s house. It changes everything because they no longer trust you or believe you are the ultimate person to look for knowledge.

Let all our children eat Oreos and acknowledge our history isn’t a bed of roses. Our nation will be a lot better off.