Something has seemingly occurred within the United States over the past week. There has been social unrest.. social upheaveal .. social crisis.. And suddenly, after a shooting in Charleston along a 33rd parallel often associated with demonic evil, the nation came together. President Barack Obama literally sang Amazing Grace to an audience grieving the 9 deaths at the hands of church shooter Dylann Storm Roof. The Confederate Flag was suddenly looked upon with disdain–more so than it had been in previous decades. And the week ended with the Supreme Court not only ruling that President Obama’s health care initiative would stand, but that gay marriage should be legal in all 50 states.
An eruption of liberalism, some would decry. Or perhaps a mixed message..
It’s usually a mixed message.
The Confederacy is long gone, President Jefferson Davis is not celebrated, but this latest flag banning has nothing to do with real history. Let’s be honest, there some historical observers who would argue that honest Abe Lincoln himself didn’t really care much for the plight of the slaves–the Emancipation hit the Southern states during the War. Even more, some writings from Lincoln showcase his bigger concern: The Union and centralized government. At times, Lincoln used warlike dictatorial powers to subject the free press to less than a perfect Union, and Lincoln’s potential mental illness led him to fire general after general after general during the Civil War. And even more, the Union states were not pure and mighty slave hating locations. They benefited quite fine from the slave trade, with many ports along the East Coast having a dark take associated with them. Rich northern families made lots of hardcore cash on the backs of slaves during the early and mid 19th Century. Today’s mood to ban the Confederate Flag is not doing anything more than simply banning history, or at least shading it a different color to meet the needs of the 1984 society we live in. That said, I don’t think the Confederate Battle Flag should fly over state capitols. The Radical Republicans failed in the Radical Reconstruction and punishment of the South. It created generations that still fight the Civil War. Taking the flag down should occur. But banning it from the car in Dukes of Hazzard? Sometimes we just get a bit too excited about pretending things in history never happened.
The health care Supreme decision has some Republicans publicly crying foul, and Democrats rejoicing. As history will show, however, the truth is a but more nuanced than simple party affiliations being able to either proclaim victory or defeat. Chief Justice John Roberts was the leading voice in favor of health care–the GOP is incensed with rage. But insurance companies aren’t. As a matter of fact, they were and still are the biggest beneficiaries of the Obamacare rules. Sure, pre-existing conditions will be covered. But also in the law: People being forced to purchase something from private companies by the rule of government. Insurance companies and big business win. They have a market that will never go away. Death. Taxes. And health care. The Obamacare law is not what Hillary Clinton and former President Bill proposed in the 90s. Instead, Obama’s health care plan is more akin to the Bob Dole 94 plan or the 2000’s McCain ideas.. The GOP (then) would have celebrated victory. Instead, Democrats did in some bizarre reversal ….
The gay marriage ruling had the biggest effect on the news cycle this week. As I write this, my Tumblr and WordPress accounts both have rainbows greeting me when I log in, and most people on Facebook have changed their profile pictures to a rainbow-colored photo of themselves. It’s a big deal, and feels like it. There is a generational shift where the younger the person is, the more inclined they are to accept and not care. The older the person is, the more likely you will see a negative response to the ruling that gay marriage can take place in all 50 states. A few religious minded friends of mine are preparing for the Rapture or worse: They say we will be the target of God’s wrath. These same religious people never explained to me why such an angry God would also create people who are born with sexual urges to defy him. Logic, my dear friends, is often hard to conjure when you’re only worried about Biblical philosophy.
This week seemed historic. I think people will be able to put their finger on a calendar and see when America changed just a bit more than usual. This was the week..
On June 21, 1993, NEWSWEEK MAGAZINE ran an article with a cover story called ‘Lesbians.’ The subtext asked, ‘What are the limits to tolerance?’ It was clear that a grand social movement was finally gaining a strong voice and, at least at that time, being thrust into the mainstream on newsstands. Pre-internet days. But in a sense, that NEWSWEEK article sort of looked as ‘lesbians’ as aliens. People who didn’t fit in.. Things changed. With changes come confusion. There will be some confusion for a bit.. Until the society works these things out and places new realities where they need to be placed.
But there has been a shift.
The proof of the social shift: Friday night lights in Washington D.C. as the White House was illuminated by the colors of a rainbow–the same President who ran for office defending to a degree the Defense of Marriage Act now wants to own history for his legacy. But presidents and supremes have nothing to do with the drumbeat of progress. It will happen regardless. Eventually, as a new generation grows into adulthood, the progress will come to fruition.
