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Portia Farley Coyne's avatar

Tanmeet, you raise very interesting questions and deeply thoughtful issues. When I asked myself, why do I believe I belong here, I immediately replied, I’ve lived nowhere else; I’ve briefly visited other countries as a tourist, but have no experience of living in any of them and establishing connections there. Then I asked myself, what is at the core of a sense of belonging? My immediate answer is, values—a shared sense of values, those bedrock beliefs we actually live by, make decisions based on, emotionally respond to with passion.

I responded to the Supreme Court’s recent majority decisions with deep anger and rejection; their values are so widely different from mine; their very act of deciding things that are outside their job description is a travesty of basic trust, they are not interpreting our Constitution (their job) but are rewriting it (not their job) to their own political liking—really not their job! To my mind, they have made themselves illegitimate and carried out a coup against our government. To my mind, they do not belong. So, now what? As I see it, ally myself with those who share my values and are willing to work together to reestablish them—to fight for them.

I most likely have gotten way off the question you brought up to consider, but here I am, sitting squarely in the middle of it. Thank you.

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Dan Ehrenkrantz's avatar

Beautiful reflection!! I have felt most “American” when I’m away from America. There are ways I belong here that are harder to feel when I’m immersed in the challenges of being here.

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