Dear America,

In some weird way I find myself both ashamed and proud of you, at the same time.

I am ashamed that we are turning people away in cities that have always been places that promoted hope and freedom in this country. In Philadelphia, families were sent back to Syria, a nation plagued by war and terror. I want you to think about this for a second. People seeking freedom, love, kindness, and most importantly safety, flew into the city that we signed the Declaration of Independence, and were turned away. Families were detained in New York City. A place in which we have a statue given as a gift, standing proud and strong, that has been a symbol of our acceptance of people in need coming into our country. This is where people were detained trying to return for jobs, to see their families, or to visit their friends. I am ashamed a government mandate is risking the lives of people running from war and begging to come into a country that claims to have open and loving arms. I am ashamed.

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"- Emma Lazarus

I am proud that people fight. I am proud of the people who found their way to airports to scream for justice and rightful passage into this country the people turned away and detained deserve. The same cities I have mentioned my shame for I mention my pride. Citizens of Philadelphia came out and proved it can still be the city of brotherly love. Citizens of New York made lady liberty proud. I am proud of the people that write to be heard. I am proud of the people that fought an unjust law, with just ones. I am proud of the people that have lost their voices from screaming over the hate, but continue to fight with a whisper. I am proud.

"Only in the darkness can you see the stars."- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

In times of darkness, I have been taught to look for the light. This behavior has been taught through much turmoil in America. Through my life, I have witnessed great darkness in this country, as we can all admit we have. But, each time, I saw you. I saw the light, and the courage, and the love that America is. Whenever I saw the bad, I saw an abundance of good that fought back with kindness and warmth. It is for this reason that I will always find pride in my country, even when I feel shame. I will look for the light. I will look for the person that reaches out a helpful hand to a stranger, feeds the starving, and loves the hated. That's what America is to me.

"Patriotism demands the ability to feel shame as much as to feel pride."- Anne-Marie Slaughter

Sincerely,

A hopeful Citizen