Twenty years ago this week I became a US citizen. Far from the arduous and often dangerous journeys taken by so many others seeking refuge from all kinds of existential challenges in their countries of origin, mine was a relatively benign process. But from the very beginning, it felt meaningful beyond the passport — more like a promise or responsibility to be an active part of shaping the “more perfect union” spelled out in the founding documents of this country than some sort of award or certification.
In light of the current shameful assault on immigrants, the very foundation of this nation that has made it great to begin with (Hello Statue of Liberty!), I caught myself questioning whether it would be a good idea to “out” myself as such. Maybe better to keep a low profile right now? Then I thought about all the injustice, insult, and oppression so many people in this imperfect but always worthwhile experiment have had to endure and overcome in THEIR “pursuit of happiness” throughout its 250 year history — from its Indigenous peoples to African Americans to women, Japanese, Muslims, LGBTQ+ and so many other marginalized groups — and felt silly to duck away from honoring this milestone.
As a native German, I’ve often asked myself and have been asked by others what I would have done had I been around in the 1930s. My usual response is one of humility, that while I wish I would have been actively resisting, I am also just another human being, capable of giving in to my fears and comforts, and following my flight instincts. When I once asked my dad — who was a state judge in post-war West Germany — that same question, his response was that he felt blessed not to have lived adult life during those times to have had to make those decisions. While I was hoping for a more reassuring statement, I couldn’t take issue with this bunt.
Without equating the risks and dangers of these two places in time, the fate of history has now conspired for me to answer those questions not only in theory, but in practice. I don’t think masked ICE agents are coming to knock on my door any time soon because I’m proudly claiming my naturalized immigrant status, but the finer point of this exercise is about nipping any proclivities toward self censorship for fear of consequences in the bud.
As has been stated and written by many people with way more skin in the game than me, the end of democracy and rule of law doesn’t start with death camps, but with good people making a million small compromises in their daily thoughts and deeds to accommodate the encroaching totalitarian aggressors. The flip side of that is that if a lot of us consciously direct our daily thoughts and acts towards light, courage, and integrity, it serves as a massive firewall against giving power away freely to authoritarians, as Professor Timothy Snyder warns about in his seminal work “On Tyranny.”
So, as my small act of patriotic pride today, I am renewing my citizen oath to support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Or to put it beyond nation state lingo, I am deepening my lifelong commitment to stand up for liberty, justice, compassion, creativity, and kindness, lift up my fellow human beings to the best of my ability, and leave this little round ball we all share just a bit more enlightened in the short time I have here.
Happy Citisvenship Day photo by Debra Baida
