With national pride shifting, what new forms of patriotism and civic engagement are emerging across the United States?

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Patriotism in the United States is increasingly being expressed less as ritual loyalty and more as active stewardship: service, local problem-solving, honest historical reckoning, and defense of democratic freedoms. Across the country, many Americans are shifting toward a civic form of patriotism centered on community work. That includes volunteering at food banks, neighborhood cleanups, school boards, mutual-aid networks, veterans’ support efforts, and local service projects tied to the 250th anniversary. Colleges, schools, and nonprofits are also expanding service-learning, voter registration, civic literacy programs, and youth leadership training to turn national pride into practical participation. Another emerging form is “critical patriotism” — the idea that love of country includes pressing it to live up to its ideals. Historians and civic educators increasingly frame protest, public debate, and peaceful dissent as part of the American tradition, not outside it. That helps explain why some citizens use symbols such as the flag in new ways, including distress signals, while still describing their actions as patriotic. Patriotism is also becoming more inclusive and cultural. For some Americans, national pride is expressed through storytelling, public history, arts, and institutions that highlight civil rights, immigration, and the country’s pluralism, as seen in projects like the Obama Presidential Center and anniversary programming built around unity and shared memory. …

Media Blast Trump Over America 250 as Fox Poll Shows 27% of Democrats Proud of U.S.

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Media Blast Trump Over America 250 as Fox Poll Shows 27% of Democrats Proud of U.S.

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