On June 1 I was happy to raise my new Progress Flag to commemorate the start of Pride Month. Even if I was not the mother of a transkid, I would fly that flag proudly as the teacher, advisor, mentor to countless LGBTQIA+ youth over the close to thirty years I've been teaching. While my life in education, as well as a life of travel experience has helped me evolve and expand a scope of vision that sees and celebrates the vast diversity of humanity, that recognizes, appreciates, admires other cultures and systems, at heart I still am proud to be an American. So when on July 1, I went to put the flag of the United States of America up and my kid, yes, the trans one, showed a great deal of consternation at this prospect, I found myself defending my right to be a Progressive and Proud American. This is what the last few decades have wrought on America. The binary thinking of both Conservative and Progressive politicians has created little room for the rational middle. The people who are are willing to "break with party lines" to "cross the aisle" have dwindled to a minority and with this concept of rational thought and willingness to compromise has been replaced with ideological and dangerous thinking. The concept that all abortions should be banned is ludicrous. Ectopic pregnancies, non-viable pregnancies, these all require abortions to save the mother's "right to life". So the "us vs. them" thinking cannot work when it comes to abortion. Common sense gun safety laws that protect children, children out of the uterus, like mandatory background checks, or public spaces where it is illegal to carry a gun, or making sure people who are mentally unstable do not have access to guns, not only for the safety of others, but more so, given the rate of suicide by gun in this country, for their own safety, these are all rational and necessary responses that do not negate the "right to bear arms".  Binary thinking does not work in life. And the last few decades in the United States has shown that it doesn't work in politics either. Humans are complicated and the swirl of angels and demons live inside us all. Or better, to think in terms of Asian ideas, we have both yin and yang in us. While there are a handful of people who may appear entirely lopsided to the yin "darkside" (I'm thinking of some of the cowardly Republicans in Congress who knew the truth of January 6th on January 6th, but somehow conveniently forgot it on January 7th) the fact is system changes from external forces rarely take hold. Change can only come from within. So I will fly the Progress Flag because I live in a country (and fortunately in a fantastically diverse and loving town) and I will fly the Flag of the U.S.A. This is not incongruous in my mind. Because, while I can recognize the harrowing ways in which that flag has been used before to belittle and oppress and kill, I can also fly this flag as a symbol of the defiant masters who worked for Progress in the system: for Frederick Douglass, for Alice Paul, for Harvey Milk, for Deb Haaland, for Danica Roem. If I give into cynicism, then the only thing that "wins" is cynicism. But if I believe, and let's be frank, continue to fight, to make sure there is room for all in this country, "we" all win. I don't believe America is #1, I don't believe it is a "city on the a hill" that can do no wrong. A nation is made of people, flawed people, and I am one of the flawed people who is a citizen of the United States. I will fight for progress in my country, but I can also be proud of the progress so many Americans have made. Despite the ill-conceived decisions of six non-elected people who wielded their power recently, gravely affecting the rights of Americans, I will not allow their myopia to dampen my belief in the power of the people of the United States. There is room for both flags in my home, I hope and belive that there will continue to be room for both flags in my country.