What does it mean to ba an American?

Many Americans believe we are a nation blessed by God, and subscribe to the notion of American Exceptionalism.  They argue that we were founded on Christian principles, and consider us to be a Christian nation, ignoring the language of the US Constitution reads. 

If we are indeed, a nation under the God of Abraham, rooted in the principles of the Old and New Testaments, then we must adhere to the concepts of love and compassion, both as a nation and as individual citizens.  Neither love nor compassion is mentioned in the constitution, but arguments can be made for their inference.  They are easily embraced as abstract notions, until we are faced with the risks and responsibilities associated with them.   A case in point – the Syrian refugees, men, women, and children fleeing their country for fear of their lives.  They are not running away from an occasional terrorist or deranged individual with an assault rifle. They are escaping the military devastation of their homes and communities. In February the NY Times reported: “at least 470,000 Syrians had died as a result of the war, almost twice the 250,000 counted a year and a half ago by the United Nations.”

Over 4 million Syrians have fled their country, and their destinations reported by CNN last September are as follows:

Turkey: 1.9 million, Lebanon: 1.1 million, Jordan: 629,000, Iraq: 249,000,Egypt: 132,000, Germany: 98,700, Sweden: 64,700, France: 6,700, United Kingdom: 7,000, Denmark: Hungary, 11,300, Australia: 12,000 resettlements, and the United     States of America, the country blessed by God, and founded on Christian beliefs - 1,500 resettlements.

And why have we responded so shamefully to this humanitarian crisis?  Because we are afraid of the risk of having terrorists sneak into our country.  Yes, it is possible that one or more terrorist could slip by our screening process, and could eventually plot an act of terror against some of us, somewhere, in this vast country of ours. But no terrorists can destroy our country. The only people who can do that are you and I  by allowing our fear and anxiety to escalate to the point that we behave in ways that refute everything that America stands for.

America has survived the 9/11 attacks, and we can survive more if necessary.  Terrorists can damage our sense of security, but not our will and our moral courage.  Lives can tragically be lost, but that happens here every day in our homes, highways, streets, and work places, and we go on.  Of course we must be vigilant, and act to protect ourselves, but we need to keep the threats and the risks we face in perspective.

We recognize the men and women in our military, and our first responders as heroes because of their courage and willingness to take risks for our benefit.  They do all they can to minimize their risks, but the risks are never completely eradicated.  They place themselves in danger for what they believe in. But as citizens and politicians, we are unwilling to do the same. We refuse to help the families whose lives have been upended by war because we cower in fear at the possibility of a terrorist entering our country.  It is shameful.

We have allowed fear to override compassion.  If we are unwilling to accept these risks and the responsibilities, we are not the country we like to think we are.  Donald Trump is diminishing our country.