i'm tired of people who are proud of who they are

but it isn't merely pride. pride by itself is merely annoying. rather, it is pride coupled with power that does the world in. as long as it is the oppressed who have pride, its impact is benign, and at times, even beneficial. when the black panthers instilled pride in their members, and when malcolm spoke to the beauty of the black race and culture, that was beneficial, as they were actions made against a white supremacist society that had, for centuries, systemically devalued black life. while israel bombs gaza, one can't fault, and one must support, any efforts by gazans to feel pride in their identity. the same goes for any people facing oppression. their pride is a reaction to the reactionary pride of the powerful. therefore, to eliminate the disease of ethnic or national pride, we must eliminate the power differentials that exist in the world. you can't have multiculturalism while the bombs are falling. you can't have equality while the powerfully prideful oppress the prideful "other."

pride with power leads to racism. pride with power leads to war. and the thing is, everyone wants power, and everyone wants to feel a sense of pride. pride, when coupled with power, invariably produces an arrogant population that devalues the lives of others. the only way out is a classless, anti-racist, universal approach. pride in nation must be replaced with respect for all people. the things we need are needed by all people; respect, food, housing, education, health care, access to culture, a culture of equality and shared resources. by creating a world where we all have these things, we will be striking a blow against the prideful, who, for hundreds of years, have only felt pride in their racial, religious, or national kin. they have hoarded power, closing ranks around an imaginary group identity, while they stole the lives and resources of those outside the scope of their compassion.

the issue is to stop this arrangement. you can't do it by voting every 4 years. you can only doing it by living.

and you must live, not in a prideful manner, but in a respectful one, of yourself and of others.

then the pride you feel can depend on the situation at hand. then, you can be proud of the jews when they rebel in the warsaw ghettoes, and also be proud of the palestinians when they rebel in the occupied territories.

i am proud of those who do the right thing. i am proud of those that fight injustice. i have divorced pride from power, and hence, from feelings of arrogance and superiority.

or, at least i'm trying to.

we all should.