We might not have utopia, but we do have freedom.
It is a nice thing to have.
My ancestors were welcomed into the United States, although they might have been hated for their Irishness, or whatever was considered deplorable in the last one hundred and two hundred years in our country. Today, countless are accepted into the United States with hate, and just as many more are turned away, families separated.
But we have freedom. We have freedom to make a difference for those that can’t be heard themselves. Just as I tell my children that they can stand up to the bully, I am allowed to stand up to the bully too.
This is a freedom.
White people might not understand their privilege. We might hurt–both intentionally and and without awareness–our black brothers and sisters. There might be tension, pain and hate.
But, together, we have freedoms here.
Freedom. Meaning, we have the potential of getting better without extreme constraints of power blocking us, constraints like forced segregation or legal slavery. Yes, there is much to be desired from our power structure, but many constraints are removed.
For example, if we choose, black and white people, and immigrants (both legal and not) have the freedom to spend time with each other and become friends. What a rare privilege.
Freedom.
Meaning, slavery has technically been abolished. Even with human trafficking, modern slavery, rampant, there is still hope. There might be a horrific crime hidden in the shadows. It might still be gnawing on both Americans and foreigners alike within our borders. But we are fighting it. There are everyday world changers rising up, creating organizations, systems, laws, care, and awareness to lessen the ties of human trafficking where we live.
The freedom we have lets us rise up to bring more freedom.
Yes, it is still a hard battle, with ethnicities at war, with immigration battles, with human trafficking still flourishing. But we have a legal framework that, although flawed, gives us a chance to live justly.
Graciously, our forefathers in the United States believed that people matter, and made laws accordingly to show this for their fellow countrymen. And over time, we’ve realized more people matter than even our forefathers were fighting for.
Some of us world changers spend our days advocating for changes to problems in our country. But sometimes we also need to take the time to be thankful that we can even advocate. Despite the nations that rage, I have the freedom to bring a little more heaven to earth.
Happy Fourth!
