In recent decades, patriotism has become partisan, a sentiment reserved for conservatives while frowned upon by the left.

This distaste is spreading to those further on the right. They maintain a nationalist attitude, but discard patriotism as pointless.

Yet to have a proper perspective on nationalism, patriotism is crucial, for it helps us have a fair grasp on the past, a positive attitude in our daily lives, and a hopeful attitude towards the future.

An Objective Gratitude

Patriotism comes from a place of gratitude and encourages the growth of this attitude as well. The very etymology of the word points us in this direction. Coming from the Latin, “patria,” meaning fatherland, patriotism denotes a sense of honor, gratitude, and respect each citizen owes their country.

The left seems filled with those who claim our history is so bad that holidays like Independence Day shouldn’t be celebrated. They see our past only through the lens of injustice, which in turn causes them to see today through the lens of victimhood.

For all their Marxist talking points, leftists don’t like to accept the fact that our civilization was won through primitive and violent means. Settlers, frontiersmen and soldiers are points of horror, but for their proletariat revolution, any end justifies the violent, cruel means. They’ll clutch their handkerchiefs and spit on the ground on account of their own countrymen, while turning a blind eye to any violence for their own political ideology.

But they misunderstand the point. Father’s Day isn’t celebrated because we believe our dads are perfect, but because of their role in bringing us into existence and caring for us, they deserve respect and gratitude. Similarly, our celebration of Independence Day is a grateful celebration for the good, not absolution for the bad.

Patriotism fosters a spirit of gratitude, which in turn improves daily life. Gratitude is not about loving blindly, but about loving intentionally and objectively. If we can’t look back and be thankful for those who came before us and the sacrifices they made for our current existence, there’s no way we can move forward.

Encouraging Hopeful Horizons

Patriotism also cultivates hope. If we understand and vocalize the good that we have, we are much more likely to fight for it.

A growing contingency on the right have thrown in the towel. The powers that be are too powerful and corrupt, so they’ve given up. No point in fighting evil or fighting for a better, fairer country because evil is too entrenched. There’s no way out except for collapse, so why bother?

While I have some sympathy for this position and can relate to feeling dismayed at all the corruption around us, this is the coward’s way out. If the likelihood of victory is the motivation behind fighting for the future, it’s no wonder so many people have decided to cynically surrender.

But patriotism impels Americans to fight for a better future, even against herself, out of love of country and love for future generations. Patriotism reminds us that so much of what we sacrifice for and defend may not be seen in our lifetimes. If our scope of vision extends only to our coffins, choosing the more difficult path or addressing the morality of our own lives seems rather futile and unsatisfying.

Real patriotism means you don’t just leave your country to die like a sick dog.

Healing the Present

Patriotism fosters comradery. Thanks to highly polarized online interactions, people take their defensiveness out into the world. But patriotism unites across differences. Remembering that we are all Americans, not these ones or those ones, helps soften the division that the media and political commentators like to put between us all.

The left looks to the past and rejects patriotism, while the right looks to the future and rejects it. Yet neither looks at the present and finds gratitude for their first-world life and for their freedom to have such idiotic opinions. They’ll look to the past and see injustice but they don’t see sacrifice. They look to tomorrow and see the dark results of a government bought-and-paid-for, but they don’t see the fruits of those citizens fighting for their values of faith and freedom.

Anyone who doesn’t see that America is worth fighting for, whether on the right or the left, should get the same message: move to another country. Patriotism is an antidote to cynicism and cultivating it daily moves us from a state of complaining to aspiring.

But patriotism isn’t just a way for us to feel better, or a way to center our attitude and focus on the good. Patriotism is a duty, something we owe to our country. It reminds us that even if our country is not delivering in the way we would hope, we have the power and duty to instill change.

If you don’t like the direction our country is heading, or you dislike parts of our history and fear repeating, then holidays like Independence Day should be celebrated even more. Love of country should serve as a motivator for change, not an evil to be expunged. Without the premise that America is good and worth fighting for, no moral or societal progress will ensue.

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The republication of this article is made possible by The Fred & Rheta Skelton Center for Cultural Renewal. 

Image Credit: NARA & DVIDS Public Domain Archive