DNC Day 2: The Party of Patriotism
This is more than an election.
I turned 18 in the summer of 2004. The first time I voted for the US Senate, I voted for Barack Obama. In 2008, the second time I voted for president and the first time I could participate in a primary, I voted for Barack Obama. For people my age, we came into our political awakening under the “hope and change” movement, and the Obamas were the catalyst for that. More than a single policy, they represent a redefinition of patriotism to me and my generation. A definition of patriotism that allowed us to take pride in our country while also fighting to make it better.
Last night, I had the privilege of attending the Democratic National Convention and hearing both Michelle and Barack Obama speak. And, yes, I’m biased, but they delivered two of the best convention speeches I’ve ever heard.
This post is going to be a little different. It won’t be about Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Project 2025, or this election (well, not entirely about them). Today, I’m inspired to write about Patriotism.
The Democrats are the party of Patriotism.
For my entire life, “patriotism” has belonged to Republicans. And frankly, Democrats and progressives were happy to give them that. Growing up during the Iraq war, we didn’t want to be associated with “patriotism,” certainly not the way Republicans and Fox News defined it.
And so, for as long as I can remember, Republicans have owned “patriotism,” which has turned into an owning of “American values.”
Well, not anymore. Today, I’m here to say the Democratic party IS the party of Patriotism, and last night, the Obamas embodied that.
No nation, no society has ever tried to build a democracy as big and as diverse as ours before. One that includes people that, over decades, have come from every corner of the globe. One where our allegiances and our community are defined not by race or blood but by a common creed. And that’s why when we uphold our values, the world’s a little brighter. When we don’t, the world’s a little dimmer—and dictators and autocrats feel emboldened, and over time, we become less safe.
That part of President Obama’s speech was a clear call to patriotism, a beautiful articulation of the importance of the American experiment, and a redefinition of patriotism defined NOT by the size of our economy or the might of our military but by our shared values that transcend race and religion.
In talking about her mother and Kamala’s mother, Michelle Obama touched on the promise of America.
Even though our mothers grew up an ocean apart, they shared the same belief in the promise of this country. That’s why her mother moved here from India at 19. It’s why she taught Kamala about justice, about the obligation to lift others up, about our responsibility to give more than we take. She’d often tell her daughter, “don’t sit around and complain about things. Do something.”
“The belief in the promise of this country.” That is patriotism.
A former slave risking her life to free other slaves. Women marching for the right to vote. A southern pastor who dared to dream of a more just society. Native Americans standing up to an oil pipeline. An immigrant fleeing poverty and oppression, risking their lives for a chance at the promise of America. A protestor, calling for a ceasefire. Union workers fighting for higher wages.
Nothing is more patriotic than people who believe in the American promise, fighting to make it better and working to form a more perfect union. That is patriotism.
Kamala Harris’ story embodies these ideals. Tim Walz’s story embodies these ideals.
Best summarized by this part of Michelle Obama’s speech:
Kamala knows, like we do, that regardless of where you come from, what you look like, who you love, how you worship, or what’s in your bank account, we all deserve the opportunity to build a decent life. All of our contributions deserve to be accepted and valued. Because no one has a monopoly on what it means to be an American. No one.
Kamala has shown her allegiance to this nation. Not by spewing anger and bitterness, but by living a life of service, and always pushing the doors of opportunity open to others.
Donald Trump and the Republican party are actively opposed to these ideals.
They deny election results if they lose. Project 2025 openly attacks checks and balances, looking to centralize power around one figure. They are antagonistic to anyone who looks, acts or thinks differently from them. They want the government to tell you what books you can read and what kind of healthcare you can receive. They are openly working to subvert our democracy yet again. And if you speak out against the cult of Donald Trump, they ostracize you. In Donald Trump’s America, there is no room for dissent. Democracy is not a set of ideals to be protected and preserved. It’s something to overcome and subvert to achieve total control and power.
In this election, there is only one party of patriotism. One party standing up for American values. And that is Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party.
So when that old, tired cliche of Republicans being the party of American values starts up again, don’t be afraid to shut it down.
We stand on the side of America, we stand on the side of patriotism, we stand on the side of democracy.
Be proud of that. Own it.
I’ll leave you with this last part from President Obama’s speech:
Whether you are a Democrat or a Republican or somewhere in between, we have all had people like that in our lives. People like Kamala’s parents, who crossed oceans because they believed in the promise of America. People like Tim’s parents, who taught him about the importance of service. Good, hardworking people, who weren’t famous or powerful but who managed in countless ways to leave this country just a little bit better than they found it.
As much as any policy or program, I believe that’s what we yearn for: a return to an America where we work together and look out for each other. A restoration of, what Lincoln called on the eve of civil war, our “bonds of affection.” An America that taps what he called “the better angels of our nature.”
That is what this election is about.