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Pride, Denial, and Isolation

What is America's biggest challenge in the world?

By Alonna JohnPublished 6 years ago 4 min read
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Americans have always been proud of their fight for freedom, independence, and human rights. Ever since Jamestown, Virginia was colonized by the British in 1607, we have been fiercely clawing, spitting and vigorously brawling for these rights as humans. It has been over 410 years since then, and we have only evolved the original rights given to us to tailor the majority of the population, but not yet all of it. For decades, a large percentage of the population have been fighting a constant battle against racism, slavery, lack of women’s rights, and many more.

Have we fought too hard for some of these rights? 410 years later, and we have almost completely diminished the purpose of them. With today’s technology, we have been able to pinpoint the problems that should have been solved when they started; beginning with unwarranted patriotism. Specifically, the ever-so-opinionated President Donald Trump. Our president has managed to isolate America from its surrounding countries simply by writing.

America has always taken pride in its beliefs. This is a free country, where you can speak out against your government without being punished for it. That doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. For example, some NFL players have been kneeling during the playing of the National Anthem, suggesting that it is to “shine a spotlight on racial injustice and police brutality.” When Trump found out about this change, he instantly began spewing threats against the NFL teams (through Twitter), stating that he will fire anyone that doesn’t properly pay respects to the flag during the National Anthem. This has caused an immense uproar within all kinds of social medias, with one side supporting Trump’s threats and accusations, while the other side bashes him for ignoring the bigger picture. Both sides of the argument are equally involved, though it has left the ambivalent people irritated, because the idea of politics being involved in their beloved sport is defeating the purpose of watching sports- which is purely for entertainment. A lot of people suggest that sports could be a good platform to discuss social issues, due to its overwhelming popularity among the community. Though, Trump and many others very openly disagree with this. President Trump continues to amaze us with his unnecessary threats posted all over social media.

Trump’s arrogance is even affecting larger populations of people—specifically the people Puerto Rico. In September of 2017, hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico with 155 MPH winds, leaving nothing behind but the remains of destroyed homes and helpless citizens. The hurricane left the island with severe floods, no electricity and a feeling of hopelessness in the community. This devastation has lead Puerto Ricans to travel to American mainland, which has caused the question to arise: Can Puerto Ricans legally travel to America and stay here? The answer is yes, they can stay here, because they are legal American citizens. Many years ago, America won Puerto Rico over in a war, which has made it an American territory. Puerto Ricans have the right to vote on most things, except for presidential elections. So legally, yes, they are American citizens. The only issue here is that many Americans don’t want them to be here. Puerto Rico hasn’t been declared as the 51st state because it would cause a “political imbalance” and offset the rules and regulations we currently have. Also, no one wants to go through the effort of redesigning the flag, or rewriting our songs. Americans don’t want to go through the effort of adding another state, simply because it takes too much time and money, and this thought process is backed by President Trump, who still, over a year later, has blatantly done nothing to give aid to Puerto Rico during this hard time.

The moment Trump became president, he began making changes that upset many Americans. He has managed to damage relationships with most neighboring nations. For example, he made general restrictions with Cuba more harsh, decreasing trade and travel between them and the US. This, resulting in tensions sparking up again, after all of the hard work previous President Barack Obama had endured to make our relationship with Cuba stronger after the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Bay of Pigs invasion in the early 1960s. Barack Obama spent a large portion of his eight years in office mending the wounds that was caused by these events. Trump’s recent actions has begun to diminish the already unstable relationship we have with Cuba. Aside from this, President Donald Trump also has plans to build a large wall along the Mexican border, simply to keep them out of the States. Hopefully he realizes that this will only cause a decrease in the advancement of our economy, and an increase in crime/ illegal immigration. He also firmly states that he will make Mexico pay for it as well. There is no positive outcome to the wall that Trump plans to build; or his actions regarding international relationships, as it will only result in the further isolation of our country.

In conclusion, America’s egotistical reputation is destroying relationships and bonds we have built with other nations, so, at this rate, it will continue to deteriorate until there is nothing left but a segregated nation of discrimination and hate. America is slowly isolating itself by shoving its arrogance down people's throats. So what is America’s biggest challenge in the world? Well, it’s our lack of benevolent thinking, our pride, and our denial of anything that could cause problems and get in the way of our plan. We are only focused on making America “Great Again”, and not on the international relationships and resources we rely on to be a successful nation. We used to pride ourselves on our world-wide connections, though now all we are proud of is our brute force and meaningless threats posted on social media.

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About the Creator

Alonna John

I am an aspiring writer of all genres. Journalism, poetry, nonfiction, fiction, fantasy and many more. I'm trying out Vocal to see if people are actually interested in what I write.

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