As a country that is in the midst of a crisis it is safe to say that the pride we feel on the Fourth of July is not enough. There was a time, either our parents or our grandparents’ generation, that people were proud to call themselves an American, they were proud to be a part of the greatest country in the world. Yet this generation refuses to say The Pledge of Allegiance because they may not believe in God. We complain that too much money is being put into military spending, but we are scared to go to the movies, or school, or even a club. I think our generation needs a swift kick to the ego. When will we wake up and realize that hating or even bashing our country is doing nothing to change it? As Martin Luther King Jr. said “Hate cannot drive out Hate”.

Instead of getting offended by this country’s past, we must create its future. This is a very trying time for our generation with a rise in school shootings, racial tension and terrorism. This is our cross to bear and we must bear it as a generation, united to make America better. My heart goes out to everyone affected by the hate in this country, they do not deserve it but this is not the time to draw lines in the sand and dole out blame.

“One Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” sounds familiar right? This is the last half of the Pledge of Allegiance and with the way the country looks, it should read “one Nation under God, divisible, with liberty and justice for some”. It is our patriotic duty to fight for freedom and equality. This means we have to stand up and fight for the people being killed or oppressed, be it, Muslims, African Americans, Hispanics, Whites, Gays or Straight. All lives have an equal worth and deserve equal respect so, this has to end! This violence does not bring pride back to our Nation, it only brings more hate and suffering.

Dallas, Texas has just experienced a horrific event. People were afraid and there was hate in the air, whether it was hate toward the police or the system. Many people lost their lives to this hate and that is incredibly disheartening. “Not all cops are bad people and not all African Americans are thugs” I’ve seen this saying a lot and from my experiences I think that it implies to a large majority of people from each group. The media does not show the kindness of the police and their love for people, nor does it respectfully show African Americans and this is a problem that needs a solution.

To take a side on issues like Black Lives Matter and Police Lives Matter only makes the situation worse, because they are both important and should be held in equal respect. In this fight for equality, we must all be seen as the same. Not differing in color, or faith, or sexual orientation, or occupation because after all, a life is a life.