Season Finale - The USA Empire

This post began as an explanation to why I could not and did not vote for Kamala Harris (or either major party) in the 2024 election. But now, in late december, this is old news! We have no choice but to look ahead, to organize and decide how we move forward from here. It's hard to ignore these days that we find ourselves in a crumbling empire, but what does the end of the US empire mean for our lives as individuals? Is there a way to let this empire fall and still thrive in community and as artists and visionaries? Is there a way to let the empire fall and not crumble in the process or leave behind the marginalized communities that are the very backbone of this country in the first place? These are the questions I ask myself most days.

I come to you through the lens of a queer feminist, a global citizen who has been fortunate enough to live in several countries, and a full-time artist who deeply knows financial and mental health struggles. I am also very fortunate, I have a good relationship with my nuclear and chosen families, an American passport that has allowed me to see the world, and an insane amount of focus and work ethic when it comes to things I'm passionate about. I also have good health and currently have enough employment through painting that I have the time to sit and write pieces like this just for the hell of it. I do not sware my allegiance to a single nation. Nationalism, to me, is a disease—a narrow lens through which we distort our view of humanity. I'm also a deep believer in democratic ideals, which is why, in good conscience, I could not vote for either major party in this past election, and believe me, this was a choice I held heavily, knowing all the implications of my decision.

Let us not forget that the United States as we know it today was founded as a rebellion against imperialism, born out of a dream that dared to imagine something different. How ironic, then, that we have become the very leaders of the imperialist agenda we once fought against.

Some might read my words and assume that I am anti-American. But I wouldn’t spend my free time writing pieces like this if I didn’t have love for this country and believe in the greater dream that I know is possible for all of us. My critiques are not just out of disdain, but also of hope for what the USA—and the world—could become. I believe in a future where we no longer have to choose between the prosperity of one nation and the suffering of others. A future where our freedoms do not come at the cost of countless lives abroad. I also believe we have a long way to go, much of our past needs to be properly acknowledged so that we can heal. Reparations need to be made before we can truly move forward. I'm also not here to romanticize our past, it is anything but that!

While the media distracted us with the theatrics of the Republican and Democratic conventions, the current administration quietly approved a $20 billion arms deal, fueling the ongoing atrocities carried out by the U.S. and Israel under the guise of "self-defense." Meanwhile, I hear people say, “But the economy is good.” Yet, if that economy thrives on the destruction of hundreds of thousands of lives abroad, is it truly “good”? How many lives are sacrificed each year to sustain this so-called “American Dream”? The U.S. remains the largest arms exporter in the world, benefiting from global conflict while the average American struggles.

At home, over 600,000 people are unhoused. We pay the highest prices for prescription drugs while drowning in medical debt. None of us are guaranteed healthcare, housing, or even basic dignity. Poverty, in America, is criminalized. We incarcerate more people than any other country, and once inside, unfortunate souls become cogs in a corporate machine that profits off their suffering—a modern-day slavery system disguised as “justice.” If you dont believe me just look up any of the businesses that profit from slave labor - MCdonalds and Verizon just to name a couple, many more can be found in another blog post called "100 ways to be a revolutionary."

The most cost-effective solution to homelessness would require $11 billion dollars. Now that sounds like a lot but when compared to the $886 billion we spend on the industrial military complex, it's baffling that no priorities are made to actually solve any of these issues. It's no surprise this $20 billion arms deal will likely bolster the military-industrial complex instead of ever being invested back into the people who caugh up the very tax dollars that support the military. The USA industrial military complex is the single largest polluter on the planet. For those of us whose politics center on environmental responsibility, this is unconscionable.

As Americans, we hold our Declaration of Independence as a sacred text, proclaiming that “all men are created equal” and endowed with certain unalienable rights—life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Yet, when we look at our foreign policy, particularly in the way we justify wars and interventions overseas, we tell ourselves that these actions are necessary to spread democracy so that others might enjoy the same freedoms we cherish. But does this logic hold?

If we truly believe that all people are created equal, how can we justify a way of life here that comes at the cost of millions of lives abroad? Is it not inherently contradictory to believe in equality while acting as though our lives matter more than the lives of those in Iraq, Mexico, Afghanistan, Palestine, Venezuela, Congo or Sudan? If we are all created equal, then our pursuit of happiness should never come at the cost of another’s basic right to live.

It is not lost on me that at least 34 of the 56 men who signed this very sacred document were slave owners, signing a Declaration of Independence on land that was stolen from the Native Americans who have been here for tens of thousands of years. What was not specifically mentioned but certainly implied is that white men are endowed with these unalienable rights and everyone else... well, good luck out there, and don't forget to pull yourself up by your bootstraps! What we see happening today with police brutality, red lining districts, and systemic oppression are a direct result of these injustices, which were woven into the very fabric of this country's conception.

And yet, there are many in this country who deeply reveer the Declaration, and so I use these words not only to expose the embeded contradictions, but also paint a picture of the ideal we were told this place is-- and what it's "supposed to be."

In 2024, we must ask ourselves: Is there not a way to structure our society—one that claims to uphold freedom and equality—so that it does not come at the expense of millions of others? We are capable of creating a system that does not rely on war, exploitation, or the destruction of other nations for our comfort. If we are to honor the spirit of the Declaration of Independence, then we must recognize that spreading “democracy” through violence is not only hypocritical, it is imperialistic. Our lives are not more valuable than anyone else’s, and no version of democracy worth saving can be built on the graves of the innocent.

Our two-party system is broken. The quote, “What if I told you that the left wing and the right wing belong to the same bird?” rings painfully true. In 2025, that bird is flying us toward nuclear war, propping up an imperialist agenda that justifies the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people in the name of democracy. These are the same systems fueling conflicts in places like Congo and Sudan, toppling governments and replacing them with corrupt regimes that sell out to corporate interests.

Whether this happens sooner or later, mark my words: one day this technology epoch will be known as the tech holocaust. In congo alone, since the mid 1990s an estimated 5.4-6 million people have died in the cross fire of the mineral wars. This is the deadliest conflict since WWII, but we hardly hear about it here because "everyone needs the new Iphone!" Just don't ask too many questions. We have unknowingly been fueling this genocide ourselves with our cheap tech lives, and the unending greed of tech companies to capitalize on slave labor and conflict minerals abroad. The blood of 4.5 million lives lost in the “war on terror” also stains our hands.

Will we own up to these crimes on our own terms? Or will the rest of the world turn away from us before we grow a pair?

Since WWII, the U.S. has orchestrated over 80 regime changes globally. Our actions have consequences! These regime changes have created the conditions for extremist groups to rise to power, trampled women’s rights, and sparked refugee crises across the entire globe. The USA is directly responsible for many of the refugee crises that send asylum seakers to our borders, where they meet dangerous and uncertain fates if they make it here alive.

Presidencies have come and gone, red ones, blue ones, but the American condition continues to decline. Each side refusing to cooperate with one another, creating a never ending cycle of circular conversations ensuring nothing gets done. The politicians pockets get filled, corporations get richer, billionaires plague our world, easily cabable of ending world hunger but choosing to pay off politicians to not have to pay taxes instead. Meanwhile the world as we knew it gets swept away by a fossil fuel industry caused hurricane... This is America. I can no longer perpetuate the illusion that we only have 2 bad choices. When I voted third-party this year, it was not to be divisive. It was to see through the division and confront a larger truth: as long as we accept the narrative of choosing between “lesser evils,” we will always be left choosing evil. Genocide is my red line. My morality did not allow me to vote for either major party. Both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are funded by AIPAC, a lobby founded to defend Israeli atrocities and push for U.S. involvement in conflicts like the Iraq War. AIPAC has already poured nearly $19 million into U.S. politics, with over $16 million going to Democrats in this past election.

When it costs hundreds of millions of dollars to run for president, we no longer live in a true democracy. Our politicians serve those who pay them the most, not the working-class people like you and me, and certainly not the planet.

We must be careful when we say, “We must save democracy,” as if voting Democratic will somehow absolve us of responsibility. I am not interested in saving imperialism, nor do I wish to spread democracy to the world when we ourselves do not benefit from it here at home. Let's let the empire fall. Not just passively, we must use boycotting and divesting strategically for the forseable future. The victims of U.S. imperialism deserve to live their lives, just as we, the people of this country, deserve more. I want a better future for all of us, though I'm afraid we have a reckoning coming.

The world often follows the examples set by the U.S. It is our responsibility to set a higher standard—one that invests in people over profit, de-escalates violence, and shifts resources from the military-industrial complex toward education, healthcare, and sustainability. Our ability to thrive on this planet is at direct risk, we cannot afford another 20 years of capitalism. It is already impossible to avoid the microplastics in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the ecosystems that feed us and regulate the earth.

The time to carve a new path is now. Climate catastrophe cannot wait. The people of Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria cannot wait. The U.S. is responsible for countless tragedies worldwide, all in the name of spreading “democracy.” But what have we really accomplished? Has the world grown freer? Or are we simply exporting imperialism under the banner of democracy?

This is about survival—yours, mine, and future generations’. Let us dare to dream.

SO WHAT COMFORTS ARE YOU WILLING TO GIVE UP IN ORDER TO SAVE THE WORLD FROM USA IMPERIALISM?

WHAT COMFORTS ARE YOU WILLING TO GIVE UP SO THE END OF THE EMPIRE MEANS THE END OF OLIGARCHY, NOT THE END OF ART AND COMMUNITIES?

I know for myself that one of my first goals in 2025 is to get my blog and my website off of WIX. I can no longer be affiliated with WIX and am actively seeking out a web developer to help me build something else. This is my last big step to divest from companies complicit in the current genocide in Gaza.

I also pledge to not shop or order anything from amazon OR any amazon affiliated shops!

Shopping locally, getting to know farmers in my area, making do with less, always thrifting, there are enough clothes on the planet for the next 7 generations.

CONTINUE to say no to bullshit American processed foods that kill 1 million Americans each year.

Vive La Revolution

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Cover image is an edited Shepard Fairey poster

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#seasonfinaleusa #theendofanempire