The area of North America confident enough in its own power to simply call itself “America,” the country that borders the United States of Mexico but is supremely certain that if it goes by “the United States,” no one will be confused. Home of the free, the proud, the brave- the country that fended off communism and sped along a new era of technological advancements, but also suffers from such wide spread obesity that it’s unlikely to speed along on a treadmill. American history, just like the history of any other major country of any relative age, is full of both beautiful and admirable achievements, and less shiny ones. To focus on just America’s successes when describing our heritage is dangerous to the extreme, and could lead to a repetition of history in relation to the more unflattering pieces of the USA’s past. American heritage is far more than just apple pie, fireworks, and documents in lovely penmanship. If one merely remembers historical events in a pleasing, becoming light, then a huge part of the meaning of heritage will be lost- the necessity of preserving the ideals and lessons we’ve learned from the past for the benefit of those who follow after us.
Our nation has had a profound history of maintaining our national treasures, and one of the most obvious signs of that history is the Nation Park System. The founders of the Park System started a legacy that reminded Americans that preserving the nation’s valuable environmental areas was indeed a national issue, and not one simply reliant on the usefulness of the area in question. There are national parks around the country, but none of them are maintained for the income that they bring in or the resources they might provide. Are we really of the narcissistic belief that it is within our right to destroy these long protected landmarks due to a lack of well-managed funds, or a belief that there is more money to be made somewhere else? “Past these towering monuments, past these mounded billows of ornate sandstone, past these oak-set glens, past these fern-decked alcoves, past these mural curves, we glide hour after hour, stopping now and then, as our attention is attracted by some new wonder-“ This is how John Wesley Powell describes his first journey through the Grand Canyon. Should it be within our power to deny generations to come the ability to experience this? Will our consciences allow us to prevent our children from discovering anew the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone, without fear of inhaling toxic gases or destroying an ecosystem with a touch?
America has a history of beauty, of the overcoming of more powerful oppressors and a constant struggle for the rights of all- but it also has a more hidden history of destruction and its own long reign as a persecutor of a variety of minorities and people, including Native Americans and the Irish. The USA can use its influence and power to protect, safe, and improve for the future, or it can raize another culture as it destroyed the people who inhabited this country pre-colonization, and support mass lynchings of anyone different. Some fear that America may be failing in its reign as a world superpower, but my real fear is that we’ll continue to decline morally in such a way as to not deserve the title at all.
