Reclaiming America

Since the Vietnam War, I have not claimed "American" as my identity. Although I am a psychologist, meeting facilitator, and Chicano ceremony leader who has provided assistance on community problem-solving and strategic planning throughout North America and abroad, I have not felt the United States was my community, and I never fully offered my services, wisdom, and energy to "America."

In late 2001, shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, I began serving as facilitator for the Positive Futures Network's retreats, the State of the Possible. The experience has been transformative.

As a youngster growing up in California, I felt tremendous pride in being American. I looked forward to facing the flag each morning at school and saying the pledge of allegiance. I felt a deep connection to "the land of the free and home of the brave." And I was proud of belonging to a country that stood for courage, freedom, and goodness.

So the damage to my spirit ran deep when teachers, fellow students, and even the school curriculum said I wasn't American. I was "Indian" or "Mexican-American." To me the underlying message was, "If you're not white, you're not American."

Despite the hurt of these racist messages, I wanted to live what I saw as the core American values -- to be responsible, to be my best, and to give back to the community. I actively participated in school, church, family and Boy Scouts. Later, I worked several jobs to support myself through college. As is the case for many others, my university experience expanded my awareness of our nation's history -- including the slaughter of native people, the institution of slavery, and the campaigns to undermine other governments to ensure cheap labor, natural resources, and markets for U.S. corporations. Then, in the mid-1960s, my generation was called to kill and die in Vietnam.

While some might be able to separate U.S. government policy from the American people, for me, "American" came to mean people who support waging war or, at best, people who choose to live conveniently ignorant of the terrible effects that some of our country's policies have on others. At age 19, I traveled to Chile to join the revolution and returned home with a guiding question -- "How do you create change within the belly of the monster?"

My response was to claim my Chicano identity with deeper passion and focus my work to advance justice, love, and respect within my community -- not for the nation as a whole. During the 1970s, I co-founded several mental health centers committed to Latino family empowerment. Later, I organized various councils of Latino community healers and activists committed to leadership development and community healing.

I was often approached to run for political office. Repeatedly, I chose not to serve. I now realize that among the reasons were the scars of racism, my distrust of the political system, and an insufficient vision of our nation's potential. Unconsciously, I felt that to be involved in the political process would mean selling out my commitment to justice and respect for all.

This was where I stood when I agreed to help facilitate the State of the Possible retreats. These are sponsored by the Positive Futures Network (publisher of YES!) and supported by the Fetzer Institute. Since 1999, they have been held twice each year to bring leading citizens together in diverse groups to consider how we might advance justice, sustainability, and compassion in our nation and the world.

In each of the retreats that I facilitated, I sat amidst a group of people more diverse than any I had experienced. The gatherings included indigenous people, African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, and European Americans; artists, corporate consultants, community activists, entertainers, ministers, political representatives, and labor organizers; Christians, Buddhists, Jews, Muslims, pagans, and persons who are simply spiritual; youth and elders, gays and straights. The only characteristic these people shared was a history of extraordinary dedication to the common good.