An Editorial by Leonard Chan

Have you ever stopped to think that the political slogan used by one of the presidential candidates is almost something that both sides could agree upon? I think I can safely say that probably anyone living in this country would like to “make America great.” It’s the “again” part of the acronym that is the sticking point for me.

Recently, I visited my dad’s home town of Oroville in the Central Valley of California. We had caught the tail end of a parade for one of the candidates. This parade consisted of people driving around in trucks with flags and banners supporting their candidate. Along with these many banners and flags, I spotted a Confederate flag. Are the pre-Civil War days the “again” that some of these demonstrators are going for?

Although their candidate does not outright condone racist symbols and statements by others, and at every chance claims not to be a racist, his political slogan is perhaps what encourages some of these more racist individuals to come out of the woodwork.

Let me get this straight. I love America, but this country has never ever been completely great. From the very inception of this country, our founders, while drafting a revolutionary constitution, compromised on the institution of slavery and condoned the taking of Native American lands (for brevity, I’ll not get into the ethnic cleansing and genocide of Native Americans). While America welcomed some immigrants, it also hindered, barred, and drove out those like my great-grandfather and grandparents from making America a comfortable home. During World War II, while America’s “Greatest Generation” was allied with other countries to fight Fascism, our government locked away Japanese Americans in concentration camps. While the United States Civil War ended slavery, it institutionalized Jim Crow policies that kept many of the former slaves and their descendants in near-slave-like conditions up till the beginning of my lifetime. It really wasn’t that long ago.

While some conditions do get better, we only need to observe the recent bouts of “Asian Hate” to realize that our status in this country lies precariously on who wins elections and what slogans and statements people use.

So what does making things “great again” really mean? “Great again” for those who are feeling a loss of power? For those Confederate flag wavers, are we to go back to the mythical days of grand plantation where slaves served the needs of their masters in peaceful loving harmony?

Perhaps you and they that support the “again” political movement think that I’ve gone too far with this. “Again” may just be a time where you thought things were better for you, your friends, and your loved ones. We tend to forget about all the other terrible things that went on while you and they had those good times.

While I was fortunately living a carefree child’s life in the 1960s, people were being beaten, burned, shot, and abused, just for fighting for their civil rights. If it were not for my education and my work with this organization (AACP), which constantly remind me to view the past with discerning eyes, I may have only remembered those days of my early life as being “great.” It amazes me that some people think things were so great even just four years ago. This is a real case of selective amnesia.

Here’s the deal: we live in a very competitive society. We tend to see things as always having winners and losers. Since the beginning of civilization, we’ve fought over precious resources and still fight. While one candidate for president likes to demonize segments of our population, can’t we all learn to live with one another, care for each other, and share what we have? Life does not need to be a “zero-sum game.” We’re all here just trying to live. Why can’t the slogan read “Make America Great for Everyone”? Shouldn’t this be our real goal? Shouldn’t we at least try?

Though the political parties have valid differences on how we get to a “great” country, let’s not fight against each other. Stop following and supporting leaders and media that pit us against one another. We or your political opposites are not the enemy. That immigrant on the corner is not any different from you, me, our parents, grandparents, or ancestors. They’re people just trying to make it in the world.

After next Tuesday’s election, whoever wins, we’re all going to have to live with one another (barring mass deportations and self migration to other countries). I, for one, would like to see us “all” move forward in making this “a more perfect union.”