Lofty Promises: An Election Eve Tribute to the American Essay

Keywords

politics, election, American essay

Abstract

In the twenty-plus years that I have been eligible to vote, I’ve moved more than twelve times, which means I’ve rarely cast a ballot in the same place more than twice. Elementary school cafeterias in Oregon, the city offices in Athens, Ohio, and a Catholic church in Lubbock, Texas. I’ve caucused inside an 80-year-old middle school, cast an absentee ballot from Japan, and voted by mail during a pandemic (don’t tell the president). A part of me loves election season—the way a community opens itself up every year to make room for this grand civic experiment, the communal queuing up to cast our votes, the elderly matrons of democracy who run the polling stations, and the polling stations themselves as little bastions of non-partisan volunteerism. It can feel utterly patriotic, and every year the part of me that grew up a Boy Scout reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and lionizing the founding fathers fills with hope in the lofty promises of America.

Original Publication Citation

“Lofty Promises: An Election Eve Tribute to the American Essay.” Brevity Blog. Nov. 2, 2020. http://brevity.wordpress.com 3 ms. pages.

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2020

Publisher

Brevity

Language

English

College

Humanities

Department

English

University Standing at Time of Publication

Associate Professor

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