One of the main selling points of living within the United States Empire is the allure of a mythical freedom. For most of my 23 years on Earth, I believed Uncle Sam. I believe that this was the land of opportunity to be whatever I wanted to be. Sure, it was never going to be easy, but this is the country where you overcome the more difficult battles in life. My personal experience with the so-called mythical freedom has begun to take place as I face more common and not-so-common interactions with the private “invisible hand” of the almighty free market.  

When I was born, I had a grade three stroke in the left cerebral hemisphere of my brain. Due to this acute cerebrovascular accident, I had a ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt installed in my head, which I’ve only had replaced once, a year after I was born. Up until the end of my freshman year of high school in 2018, I had never had any debilitating symptoms, until a laundry list appeared seemingly overnight. 

This overnight change in symptoms has put me in a position to have my VP shunt replaced, which had me thinking how much a surgery like this would potentially cost my family and I.  

According to research from the National Library of Medicine, a shunt revision surgery ranges from $30,000 to $50,000. But depending on how lengthy your stay is, costs reach over $100,000, which is what my initial surgery cost back in 2002. Now, to zoom out for a moment, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) estimates that there is a total of 220 billion dollars in medical debt owed by Americans. The study also found that 14 million people (roughly 6% of U.S. adults) owe over 1,000 dollars and about 3 million people (1% of U.S. adults) owe more than 10,000 dollars. If I think of a list of all my family and friends, every single one of them has a privatized healthcare horror story to share, making my experience far too common for the U.S. working class.  

This material reality for millions of Americans begs the question, does Uncle Sam have our best interests at heart? Would a country that loves its people build a society off of Indigenous genocide and chattel slavery, all the while intentionally refusing to reckon or consider reparations owed? Would Uncle Sam hold capital accumulation for the ownership class in higher regard than the well being of 99% of his people? Would he allow the black bagging in broad daylight and concentration of immigrants in camps built in our backyards?

Due to his actions over his 250 year lifespan, I have a problem with Uncle Sam – a grievance. A prevailing grievance that will not subside until he lives up to who he says he is on paper. I don’t resonate with the feeling of being “American” that is often espoused here in the US. Every time I hear the Star Spangled Banner, I hear the voices of children experiencing genocide by our bombs in Gaza. I hear my thoughts of shame and burden when I think of my disability. I think of Pierre Damas Bel, Liam Conejo Ramos, and Nolan Wells. I allow my mind to wonder at how our lawmakers are able to sleep at night, knowing all the human suffering they cause on a daily basis. 

Francis Fukuyama proclaimed that the end of history was upon us after the fall of the Berlin Wall. That liberal democratic capitalism was here to stay forever. However, my dear friends, our collective liberation begs to differ.