Proud To Be An American

As 3 and I stormed Oneil library last night with probably 2,000 other students here at BC, it was beautiful to see the patriotism and unity on display that our great land sometimes forgets. It's what makes being American so great. The idea that one shot can ignite a nationwide party that simply will not be stopped. I mean, we hit the libraries, the quads,the mods, and came just shy of full on storming the stadiums, but to me it wasn't the places, it was the people. The standard USA chants, the God bless Americas, the hugs and high fives, the reading of the declaration of independence, and the teary-eyed national anthems. One unbelievable scene stood out in particular that I think sums up last night, and every night our great land comes together and remembers our undeniable ideals:

There we all stood, banging on the doors of Oneil Library, the library named for that great US Senator, and there we waited, as two cops inside took off their hats, got their keys out, and opened the doors. They let us march on in and take the building as if we were the troops on D-day storming the beaches. As we all congregated there, chanting and singing, I turned around and looked at one of the cops: He stood speechless, eyes swollen, mouth gaping, and had his phone out video-taping the entire scene. This man wasn't trying to get kids in trouble or file a report. This guy stood there to film this advantageous jubilee so that he could go home to his wife, and his children, and his grandchildren, and tell them "this is what America is all about." Neither I, nor the officer filming last night knows if Al Queda is finished or if this War on Terror is, or will ever be "over." We don't know if Republicans and Democrats will ever get along, or if the energy crisis will ever be solved. We live by what we know, and what we know, and knew last night, is that America, at its deepest core, is not about our disagreements or our weaknesses, but about the ideals, beliefs, and freedoms we all enjoy together under our flags, our songs, our unity and our justice. It's about what Francis Scott Key wrote back in 1813 "And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there." Through the hard times, the destruction, the argument, and the bombs, our flag, our resolve, our togetherness was and always will return, always will be there. That is what this BCPD officer filmed to show his family, that is what we all remember on nights like last night.

Posted by Mucc.