Proud to be an American

[Along with some political photos, I'm including some photos from recent visits by our favorite Americans and non-Americans.]

I cannot believe that I cried during a speech by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, but it’s true. Furthermore, I can hardly believe it took a French presidential address to the U.S. Congress to make me feel really proud to be an American, but that’s what happened. The only other time since we got here that I’ve felt this way was when I walked through the D-Day cemetery with my parents, Josh and three French friends. In both cases, it was a powerful reminder that America has stood for courage and freedom in real and absolute ways. It can be a rough thing to be an American abroad in times such as these. I have regularly fielded the question, “But what happened in 2004?” or “Does your country really support the war?” or “Is America really ready for a woman or an African-American as president?” or just “Who will be the next president?” Today over lunch with a Turkish friend I asked, as I usually do with a bit of trepidation, “So, how are our countries getting along?”

[Side note: Once I asked that same question to my Turkish friend, but my Canadian friend chimed in by saying, “Well, there is the US/Canadian water crisis” I was dumbstruck and asked sheepishly, “We are having a water crisis?” She said, “Yes, you keep stealing our water from the Great Lakes, and what are we going to do, send our Mounties to get you?” ]

In the face of such questions, I usually do the best I can to talk about the America I know—the one that works hard, the one that believes in freedom, the one that still thinks that anyone can be president, the one that understands that sacrifice is a necessary part of freedom, the one that never actually used the term “Freedom Fries”.

I am less able to answer specific political questions in any helpful way. I fumble and sometimes find myself angry at the fact that I even have to entertain these questions. Sometimes all I can mumble is, “I didn’t vote for Bush and I don’t know who will be the next president.” Today I found myself in the rather odd and uncomfortable position of trying to describe “single issue abortion voters” to two friends who are fiercely proud that their countries are secular (and therefore, as I understand it, without the extremely religious driving major policy decisions).

But when Sarkozy was able to take a typically French view of history, which looks at history in terms of centuries (not days or months or even years) I was reminded why I am proud to be an American in France. Sarkozy seemed genuine in his appreciation of George Washington. He was downright moving as he talked about the sacrifice of American soldiers during WWI. His description of parents teaching the role of America to their children by taking them through American cemeteries from WWII was what made me tear up. It may all be just talk and rhetoric, but I loved it and so did the members of Congress who kept applauding.

America may or may not have it “right” in a lot of ways right now. We may not ever really be the perfect country that we hope for and that the world expects, but I think we still have a lot to teach and I reveled in the sentimentality and seemingly genuine admiration of America by a French president.

When I saw a French friend of mine today for lunch, she greeted me with a slightly devious smile and the comment, “You liked Sarkozy’s speech, didn’t you?” I admitted I was fond of it and she agreed that it clearly signified a warming in U.S.-French relations. She was a bit embarrassed that Sarkozy didn’t give the speech in English, and then went on to talk about all of the other European leaders who have come to France and given speeches in French. I countered that his 60 Minutes interview was in English and I thought the CNN translator was perfectly fine. I also said “I’m really glad it was Sarkozy talking to our Congress rather than the other way around.” We then talked a bit about which French president’s liked the US. Who knew? Charles de Gaulle really only tolerated us?

She also made sure to emphasize that the speech also made it very clear that just because it is an ally, France doesn’t have to always agree with us. Even in our casual conversation, the pride in French leadership was evident.

In contrast, however, I was told by my Turkish friend that the speech also got headlines in Turkey. It read: “Fido visits US Congress”. Apparently the Turks, who are not so fond of the French, refer to Sarkozy as Fido in order to conjure up images of a small annoying dog who barks a lot. Oh, EU politics are complicated.

It may be too early to judge what kind of president Sarko the American (as he’s known here) will become. In the election, I was pulling for his opponent and have been a bit skeptical of him. He is doing some potentially creepy things with immigration and who knows if he will get any major reforms passed. The transportation strike that we are in the midst of is going to be a key test of Sarkozy's abilities and legacy. But for now, I am grateful to him for having the right words to give me back a bit of pride in America. I guess it goes to show that all politics really is local in its own international sort of way.

sPg