Every Citizen Has Their Nationalism Point, Definition, and Time
When I was a kid, I had no fundamental and explanative understanding of what nationalism is. Perhaps it is just the understanding of school material that says that nationalism is the love of us to the nation and whatsoever. But before we go further on the main explanation, let’s firstly limit the scope of what nationalism is.
At some points, nationalism is quite similar to patriotism. George Orwell says that nationalism means giving pride of place, culturally and politically, to a distinctive ensemble of individuals. At the same time, patriotism is a love of country, a devotion to a particular place and way of life. Some other says, such as Ketut Rusmulyani (2020) in Semangat Nasionalisme dalam Bingkai Kehidupan Bermasyarakat, Berbangsa, dan Bernegara, that nationalism is an understanding that assumes that the highest loyalty of each individual is to a country or nation. In a narrow sense, nationalism is a feeling of excessive love for the country, so they often look down on other nations or tribes. In a broad sense, nationalism is a feeling of love and pride for the homeland and its people without looking down on a tribe, nation, or other countries. In this case, nationalism is the love feeling for the country in any way.
So this is what I’m going to say, every citizen has their own nationalism point, definition, and time. Why though? I experienced this. Previously, I was just someone who felt that my country was lacking, lost to other countries, and disappointed because there were many social cases, corruption, etc., so its citizens were not prosperous. Even I wanted to change my citizenship to another country when I was a kid. But, day by day, I felt something about this. Something changed. What is it? The feeling towards the nation. By joining and being involved in various international activities, I slowly feel love for my nation. Those made my eyes wide open, letting me know that, factually, every country has its own problem. Still, it doesn’t make the land worthless. Everyone, every nation, is struggling for their too. We grew up in this country. We thrive in this country. We study in this country. We became who we are today in this country, in our own country. Those are the points. Those made me define what nationalism is: the love for a nation in any way. And in my case, I just want to make my country proud. And the time — what I mean here is not the length of people loving their country but the time they understand what nationalism really is — was not late knowing and understanding these. I understand those just years before, till I finally write this out. And now, I don’t even think about those childish-unopened minds before. Now I was just thinking about how this nation could become better.
Seeing those statements above, conclusions were made. We cannot judge someone’s nationalism. We cannot assume that a guy who didn’t join the independence day ceremony has no nationalism in his heart. We cannot judge if someone listens to western music; they hate native music. We cannot assume if someone wants to live abroad, they’re not feeling at home in their country. The main point is that we have no right to judge others’ nationalism. Instead, we could maximize — use — our own chances, power, and goals to contribute to the world. If we contribute to the world, our contribution to our nation will follow. No need for a huge thing to do that. Small things also matter. That’s why, by seeing and experiencing these feelings, I believe that every citizen has their own nationalism point, definition, and even time — whether it is now or next fortnight.
Hopefully, those explanations and the country’s independence day celebration could be our self-reflection on what we should do and contribute to our country.
