Young Writers Society

A/N : I wrote this for AP lang

The word American means different things depending on your point of view and where you are from. To the citizens of many countries, the word American can mean an overweight, racist, diabetes stricken individual who doesn’t care about anything but where his or her next piece of barbequed meat comes from.  Americans are often described as selfish people that are mostly concerned with gaining as much wealth for themselves as possible, with little or no regard for the fate of others. Another popular sentiment is that if you are American you like football, NASCAR, and driving vehicles that consume enough fuel to power a city for a week in one day. An anti-American person is always quick to point out that North America is a continent and therefore, citizens of Canada and Mexico should also be called Americans. 

For those of us that are fortunate enough to live in the United States of America (USA), the word not only serves as an abbreviation for the name of our country, but the it also represents a sense of  pride and freedom that only citizens of the USA will ever truly know. This feeling comes from the fact that no other country is quite like the USA. Our nation is a melting pot, comprised of people of many different races, backgrounds, and cultures, The USA has only existed for a couple of hundred years while many countries have civilizations that date back thousands of years. The USA was founded on the principals of democracy and that remains a key characteristic of the beliefs of most Americans today. There have been dark times and a crooked leader in the past, but that is true for any nation.

Ours is one of the freest nations, were one can receive a higher education, own a home and car, carry a firearm, have a steady job or even start a business. Very few other governments promise the freedom of speech, press, assembly and religion and uphold it. Thinking like an American means that you were taught from an early age that you can achieve virtually anything you want if you are willing to work hard enough. Americans are proud of our accomplishments but humble enough to remember that lots of hard work and sacrifice was required to achieve them.

Being a democracy is sometimes difficult and there are lots of disagreements among our leaders about what to do next but the concept is that the majority always rules. We have always struggled with the practice of treating all people equally but as a nation we keep working to get it right. The USA lends military resources and financial aid to our allies and citizens of other countries that are in need. In the USA, higher education is available to all those who elect to pursue it. Many Americans choose to pursue a career in our armed forces but we do not require military service. Given all these factors, it should be clear America is not just full of selfish rich people but it truly is the land of the free, and the home of the brave.