This is my fucking flag, too.

I’m as American as they come. I’ve weathered hurricanes and the Great Recession. I’ve voted in every election since I was of age 26 years ago. I’ve driven across the whole country twice and I’ve set foot in 31 of the states that those 50 stars represent. Ancestors of mine have fought and died for this flag in every single American war, including on both sides of the Civil War. My father is a Vietnam veteran. My mother is an anti-war protesting hippy, even in her 60s.

The first Harlans in America were Quakers who helped found the Pennsylvania colony in the 1680s. They were Christians who were persecuted for their beliefs and sought out a better life in the New World, preaching equality between men and women and against the evils of slavery. Those Harlans spread out through the country, helping found this nation every step of the way. My ancestors have a county in Kentucky named for them, and from those ancestors come not one, but two Supreme Court Justices, a Secretary of War, a Senator and Secretary of the Interior, and two Congressmen. Even Abraham Lincoln’s daughter-in-law was a Harlan, and she gave birth to baby girl that she named Jessie Harlan Lincoln.

My great-great-great grandmother was an Illinois tribal member named Grandma America.

At 26, I made it as a successful and working professional composer in a uniquely American technological industry built from the ground up in my backyard. I bust my ass, routinely working 50 to 60 hour work weeks for months at a time for monolithic American companies like Disney, EA, Google, and more. And with my hard earned money, I pay my taxes. I donate my money to politicians, organizations, and causes in which I strongly believe. I have done my best to buy American, even when it meant ordering custom made sneakers online that ended up falling apart after 1 month. And all the while, I’ve watched American manufacturers shirk the same responsibility. I think globally, but I act locally and support mom and pop businesses whenever I can. Even during a global fucking pandemic.

I’ve fought for freedom of speech against my high school’s school board. I’ve marched. I’ve stood in moments of silence. I’ve written political blogs and worked as part of a winning grassroots organization that fought the Pennsylvania legislature and made them do the right thing when they weren’t interested in helping the state’s overworked doctors. I traveled across the country to our nation’s capital and stood for hours in freezing weather to attend President Obama’s inauguration. I’ve signed petitions. I even routinely answer the phone and talk to the people who call me asking for political donations even if I don’t have money to give them, because they’re just other Americans doing their jobs and they deserve basic human kindness and neighborly respect instead of being cursed at and hung up on all day long.

This is what this Democrat looks like. Industrious. Hard working. Dedicated to his family, but also dedicated to our collective successes. Aware of just how varied and diverse we all are after centuries of shared American experiences, aware of our tremendous potential, and aware of how short we’ve come to providing the same promise to all within our borders equally.

Donald Trump will tell you that, because I’m a Democrat, I’m a monster who wants to destroy our country. Fuck that. Fuck him. I’m just one in a centuries long line of Harlins who have built this country on our backs with hard work and a dedication to our fellow men and women, whether they asked for that help or not and regardless of their color or creed.

So this is my fucking flag, too. I come from 333 years’ worth of Harlins fighting to make sure that it isn’t a symbol of racism and hatred. And I promise to do the same thing, because it’s my family’s American tradition.

Vote.