Anti-patriotism

Not to be confused with Anationalism.
Four Victims of Cheap Patriotism (1910). Anti-war cartoon depicting a widow grieving the death of her husband alongside their children playing with a toy rifle and soldiers.

Anti-patriotism is the ideology that opposes patriotism; it usually refers to those with cosmopolitan views and is usually of an internationalist and anti-nationalist nature as well. Normally, anti-patriotism stems from the belief that patriotism is wrong since people born in a country, whether they like it or not and regardless of their individuality, are encouraged to love the country or sacrifice themselves for it; consequently, people who oppose patriotism may oppose its perceived authoritarianism, while others may believe that patriotism may lead to war because of geopolitical disputes. Usually, this term is used in a pejorative way by those who defend patriotism or nationalism, and terms such as cosmopolitanism or world citizenship may be used to avoid the bias that comes from the typical usage of the words anti-nationalism or anti-nationalist.[1] The idea of multiple cultures intertwined has also been questioned as anti-patriotic, but mainly in smaller social communities: colleges, universities, etc.[2] The Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918 were pieces of legislation in the United States that were passed after it entered World War I, to incriminate individuals who attempted to impede the war effort.[3] Those who did so were punished and believed to be performing acts of anti-patriotism.[3]

  1. ^ Stephen Nathanson (1993). Patriotism, Morality, and Peace. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 0-8476-7800-8.
  2. ^ "Is cultural pluralism anti-patriotism? I think not". UV College Times. 2007-12-03. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
  3. ^ a b Gillman, Howard; Graber, Mark; Whittington, Keith (2012). American Constitutionalism. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 419–420. ISBN 978-0-19-975135-8.