Nationalism as defined by Webster’s Dictionary is “devotion to an individual nation; patriotism or chauvinism.” Nationalism as defined by my high school history teacher is, “The cause of the second World War.” And in the wake of Sept. 11, it is a mix of both with special emphasis on chauvinism and war.

Since Sept. 11, Americans have become fiercely nationalistic. But it was OK because the government told us it was patriotic to hate the terrorists and Islam. Many Americans took it one step farther.

You were considered unpatriotic, and thus worthy of our loathing, if you did not have an American flag in your lawn and every window of your home, if your grass was too long or if you just plain looked funny.

Anyone with a beard was automatically associated with terrorism along with those with different racial backgrounds or religious beliefs.

Our nation’s patriotism and unity against terrorism has already become a war of hate and prejudice. We justify anything to hate others, and if we cannot find anything, we make it up. It is like the Red Scare in millennial form.

And despite all of our justification, we Americans are no better than the terrorists we hunt. They justify their actions with a warped version of religious fanaticism while we use warped patriotism.

Patriotism is not hating others, but loving your country. Because we live in a free country where we can have our own beliefs even if they are different from the majority, patriotism means we respect the laws our country has made to protect these freedoms.

Let’s give up our hateful tendencies and chauvinism before we are pulled into World War III. It happened once and it can very easily happen again if we continue on this path of hate and narrow-mindedness.

Elicia Grace

Freshman

Genetics