The American dream in the time of wokeism

From July 4, 1776 — when America’s colonies announced their independence from Britain — until today, the US has survived major crises, including a civil war, two world wars and the 1929 financial collapse.

After 245 years, a short period of time in the history of nations and peoples, the US is considered the most powerful country in the world.

In its relatively brief existence, the US has had a direct impact on much of the planet and is seen as the leader of the free world, which explains why most of its citizens are proud to be Americans.

Nobel Memorial prize winner Gunnar Myrdal, the Swedish economist and sociologist, famously presented a detailed definition of the US, explaining that American identity is built around a constellation of ideals — individualism, liberty, equality, hard work and the rule of law — that comprise the national creed.

For centuries, Americans have defined themselves by their common values and adherence to individual freedoms instead of racial, religious and ethnic identity.

It was no accident that the constitution of this great nation began with the phrase, “We the people.”

However, US society is far from perfect, and there are unresolved problems that citizens are still suffering from and trying to overcome.

US society is a reflection of the country itself, which is constantly developing and changing.

For example, who would have expected 50 years ago that a man of African origin would be elected to lead the US, or that a woman would occupy the second-highest position in the country, especially since women had no voting rights until 1920?

Watching today’s news on US domestic affairs, we see that crime rates have risen significantly, while street murders and looting have become a frequent occurrence in major cities from New York City to San Francisco.

In October, the National Center for Health Statistics of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the country has just recorded its highest increase in rates of homicide in modern history.

Robert Anderson, chief of the mortality statistics branch at NCHS, told US media that the increase was the largest in 100 years. “We had states being added to what we refer to as the death registration areas, so we were counting deaths in more areas over time. We did not have all states reporting until 1933, Anderson told CNN.

The US magazine Foreign Policy warned earlier this year of the possibility of civil war breaking out due to several factors, the most important of which is the division of national identity.

“National identity is divided along a critical axis, such as race, faith or class. All countries have fracture lines and cleavages, but some divides are deeper than others. Even initially minor cleavages may be exploited by domestic or foreign actors committed to redistributing wealth or power. For example, the Soviet Union (and now Russia) has successfully devoted serious resources to destabilizing the US and its allied democracies by intensifying existing cleavages,” the magazine wrote, stressing that the US now displays all core elements that can lead to a civil breakdown.

This is an extreme opinion with which I strongly disagree.

With the surge of the far-left progressive movement and its attempt to use identity politics as a tool to manipulate every aspect of American life, the average American has begun to realize where this is leading. Democrats, Republicans, independents, conservatives and liberals have a common goal, which is living a dignified life and securing a bright future for their children. That explains why, after only 10 months, President Joe Biden’s approval rating is, by any measure, unenthusiastic.

Black American parents have rejected the idea that their children should be taught controversial race theories in the classroom.

Families from different ethnicities are opposing “defund the police” calls for the sake of their safety and stability. Millions have chosen the US as their new home because it was, and will always be, a land of prosperity and possibility.

Wokeism has hit a wall.

No drug dealer should be a hero, no pedophile should be a symbol, and no domestic abuser should be a martyr.

The 2022 midterm election will not simply be a race between two political parties. On the contrary, it will be a moral contest to defend American identity and the core of its creed.

After the events of the past two years, citizens and politicians must realize that racism and racial injustice exist and should be dealt with as the leading priority of every elected official.

Next year will mark the far left’s biggest disappointment when it sees the poll numbers and hears the voice of its own supporters as they say: “We still believe in the American dream.”

Numbers never lie.

• Dalia Al-Aqidi is a senior fellow at the Center for Security Policy. Twitter: @Daliaalaqidi