It is the American citizen, not the soldier . . .

It is the American citizen, not the soldier or reporter,
Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier or poet,
Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier or campus organizer,
Who has given us freedom to demonstrate.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier or lawyer,
Who has given us the right to a free trial.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier,
Who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is draped by the American flag,
And who allows protesters to burn the American flag.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier,
Who surrenders their freedom to serve our republic so that future generations may enjoy that freedom.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier,
Who makes makes the ultimate sacrifice in defending our republic’s freedom.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier,
Who swears an oath to the Constitution of the United States to defend against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier,
Whose principles are armed & guarded by the Constitution of the United States of America and the Declaration of Independence.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier,
Whose duty is to defend the Constitution and our republic.

It was the American citizen, not the soldier,
Who wrote  the Constitution and Declaration of Independence.

It was the American citizen, not the soldier,That fought for our independence, each hero, brave and bold.

It is the American citizen, not the soldier,
Who wears his uniform proud, and will surrender their life so that our country may live.

I wrote this in honor of not the soldier, but in honor of those Americans who fought and continue to fight for our freedom, from the days ’76 to the present day. You don’t have to wear a military uniform to defend our country. We have people fighting for our country all the time, and the majority of the time, they do not have a uniform. They are a simple individual whose patriotism that defines our blessed republic. Mahatma Ghandi, took on the British Empire, the most powerful nation during his time, and yet, he was not a soldier but a citizen of his country. He fought for what he believed in, freedom. Likewise, in our country, the United States, we have people fighting for our country, our freedom, all the time, they are simple mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, lawyers, doctors, factory workers, and teachers; the list goes on and on. At any given time, in times of crisis, it is the American citizen that will answer the call of our country, and of the several States that represent our glorious Union.

My intent is to not offend our soldiers, but to honor every American citizen who believes in freedom and will fight for it. To those American citizens, who gave their lives for our country, to those American citizens who are in jail fighting for justice, to those American citizens who will risk their lives and fortunes so that our republic may continue, I salute you all.

 

 

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It is the Soldier, not the reporter
Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the Soldier, not the poet,
Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer,
Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.

It is the Soldier, not the lawyer,
Who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the Soldier, who salutes the flag,
Who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is draped by the flag,
Who allows the protestor to burn the flag.