In Germany, the World Cup is a reason to wave the flag. It's significant because Germans are not overtly patriotic. Until the 2006 World Cup, flag waving was generally not ok. German national pride and conflicting guilt about the Holocaust and Nazis make it a complicated issue. I found a really good post on the topic from a blog called Bridgekeeping Traveller, written by a German woman:
Whether I want it to be or not, Germany is part of me – and that includes its dark past. But with this dark past being such a dominant association with Germany, being proud of being German is something that doesn’t feel quite right. Add in the very important factor that an extremist form of patriotism is exactly what national socialism was all about, and you may understand why Germans are usually very very careful to express pride in their national identity.
What if we forget? What if we lose awareness of the responsibility we have? What if things got out of hand?
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| The view from our living room window. Our neighbors are getting ready for the World Cup. |
Americans are at the other extreme. We are raised to be flag-wavers, to pledge allegiance, to put American flag patches on our jerseys and streamers on our bike wheels for the 4th of July. After September 11th, flag waving was everywhere, and nationalism more pronounced than before. Everyone needed a 'support the troops' magnet on their car and a stars and stripes lapel pin. In a messy combination of religion, nationalism and sports, by "God Bless America" was added to "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh inning stretch. Check out this very articulate and thoughtful article on that subject from the Washington Post.
The American flag has even been adopted as a fashion statement, at least in Europe. You can often see people with stars and stripes scarves, American flag Converse All-Stars, or T-shirts printed with some nonsense phrase in English like "limited special edition" and a worn-looking flag.
I don't think any of that is wrong. I do think the way that Americans show their patriotism is often over the top (to use a good American saying), spoon-fed, misplaced. Of course, if there's one thing I've learned from living elsewhere, it's that everything in the U.S. is big and bold and over the top. It's good to be proud of where you are from and feel like you belong there. But do you need to put it on a bumper sticker?
I also think that some people believe that the U.S. is always right, it's Reagan's "city on a hill" and can do no wrong. But like religion, like family, it's possible to love your country even when you disagree with it, even when you've seen its flaws. In fact, when you can think objectively about your country's history and its current behaviors in the world, you can see what its strengths and weaknesses are. Maybe then you are even more patriotic than someone who doesn't look past country music lyrics and Chevy truck ads.
What does all this have to do with the World Cup? A lot, actually. Little Germans are now riding tricycles with flags taped to the handlebars. In a few days, people gathered in front of TVs around the world will be singing national anthems and painting their faces. It won't be the time to discuss National Socialism or collective guilt. Though it should be possible to remember that history and still cheer for your team.
Rev. James Marsh, the author of that seventh-inning stretch article you should read (that one I linked above) sums it up well. He writes, "Dissent is patriotic. We have the right to sit down when everyone else stands up."
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