13/12/2018
I know that it might seem a tad odd to give space on 'Just My Opinion' to the words of an actress in an American TV show. However, when I watched the opening episode of season 5 of Madam Secretary, the speech by the show's title character at the end of the show actually struck a chord. I know it's fiction, but bear with me.
Nationalism is a problem affecting many countries. It is an issue in America. And it is an issue here in the UK.
In the UK, it has been the root cause of many hate crimes and is a large contributor to the disastrous path the country has been set on since the 2016 referendum.
It gives a platform to thugs like Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, Paul Golding and Jayda Fransen. These xenophobic bigots and their followers actively stir up hatred and mistrust, using whatever means possible to turn people against each other and to create more extremists.
That speech:
"What is an even greater threat than nuclear weapons? That which makes the use of them possible.
Hate.
Specifically, the blind hatred one group of nation can have for another.
And that is why I am convinced that Nationalism is the existential threat of our time.
I want to be clear. Nationalism is not the same as patriotism.
It’s a perversion of patriotism. Nationalism, the belief system held by those who attacked us, promotes the idea that inclusion and diversity represent weakness, and that the only way to succeed is to give blind allegiance to the supremacy of one race over all others.
Nothing could be less American.
Patriotism, on the other hand, is about building each other up and embracing our diversity as the source of our nation’s strength.
“We the People” means all the people.
America’s heroes didn’t die for race or region.
They died for the ideals enshrined in our Constitution.
Above all, freedom from tyranny, which requires our unwavering support of a free press, freedom of religion, all religions, the right to vote, and making sure nothing infringes on any of those rights, which belong to us all.
Look where isolationism has gotten us in the past.
Two world wars.
70 million dead.
Never again can we go back to those dark times when fear and hatred, like a contagion, infected the world.
That, as much as ending the threat of nuclear war, is what today is about.
And it’s why we must never lose sight of our commo humanity, our common values, and our common decency.
I was reminded recently of our nation’s founding motto, e pluribus unum.
Out of many, one.
13 disparate colonies became one country, one people.
And, today we call on all Americans and people everywhere to reject the scourge of nationalism.
Because governments can’t legislate tolerance or eradicate hate.
That’s why each one of us has to find the beauty in our differences instead of the fear.
Listen instead of reacting.
Reach out instead of recoiling.
It’s up to us.
All of us.
Thank you."
Elizabeth McCord
Madam Secretary
Series 5 Episode 1
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