USA! USA! Chants like this during a Men’s or Women’s world cup soccer game are great examples of patriotic actions to support men and women representing our great nation. However, there is another side to blind support for America’s actions abroad. Nationalism, or exalting one nation above all others and placing primary emphasis on promotion of its culture and interests as opposed to those of other nations or supranational groups as defined by Meriam-Webster. This is one of the main causes of both of the World Wars in Europe and can be a dangerous feeling for a country to deal with. It is perfectly fine to believe America is the greatness nation on earth, but where we and other countries run into problems, is when we believe that there can be no other culture besides ours. I define unsafe nationalism by two distinct characteristics: the unwarranted hate of all foreigners, and the undue praise of necessary military actions as America’s greatest accomplishments.
The unwarranted hate of all non-Americans is one of the first steps towards a nationalist culture. Hating one for their nationality is just the same as hating one for the color of their skin. All people should be given their fair shake to prove whether or not they can be trusted. An unfortunate example of this is Islamophobia. While it is true that there exists a small sector of extremists that wish to instill fear, not all Muslims are like that. Every person deserves a clean slate to prove their worth; this is a characteristic of an accepting nation that can still be patriotic. We tend to put the focus on the faults of other nations rather than looking at our own. I believe a core trait of a patriotic nation is the ability to look within and say “We can be better.” As the most powerful nation in the free world, it is our job as citizens and diplomats to set an example of how to behave.
The undue praise of necessary military acts as great accomplishments can also be a dangerous act. I am not anti-military, and I think having a strong one to show our willingness to support others is important, but the most important things our diplomats should do should be great speeches rather than ordering bombing runs. The greatest accomplishments of our countries should be acts that avoid conflict or further a field of research to save lives all around the world. Yes, the use of force is necessary and the only option sometimes, but the use of the written or spoken word is everyone’s greatest tool. Words can show we mean business and provide a list of what we expect from our allies or what we will not tolerate. A celebration of the loss of human life, even if they are enemies of the state, should not be encouraged. Those targets who died may not be a threat anymore, but the hate of individuals from a region brews dangerous intolerance.
