Scout Interview

The conversation revolves around the concept of being American. The child struggles to define what it means to be American and why people want to live in America. They discuss feeling proud to be American, moments that represent the country well, and instances where they felt not proud. They touch on the topics of freedom, rights, and representation. The child mentions learning about the 9/11 attacks and the importance of patriotism. They also discuss the safety and freedom they feel living in Nebraska compared to other states. The conversation ends with a discussion on what makes someone American, with the child emphasizing the belief in freedom as a defining factor. Okay, what does being American mean to you? Um, that's a hard one. Yeah, it is. Uncle Joseph, the same thing. Uh, I mean, I need your help. I don't even know how to answer this. I'm sure you've talked about this in school. Yeah. I don't know. Are there certain things that you think that Americans have privileges of that other country stuff or another ethnicity stuff? No. Okay. Then why do a lot of people want to live in America? I don't know. Here, do you want to throw in an easier one? Uh-huh. Okay. This is about, like, more, um, maybe more like a story you could tell me or something. All of them. Okay. So the question is, do you like being American and are you proud to be American? Yeah. I like to be American. I'm proud of it. That's all I have. That's all you have. Why? Is there a specific moment where you felt really proud to be American? Kind of. I don't know when that moment was. I'm not sure. Okay. Um, why don't you try to think of a story or a time where you felt like you were really proud? Like, for me, that's on the 4th of July. Like, I was really proud to be an American on the 4th of July. But you might have a different one. The 4th of July. 4th of July? Yep. And why do you think you feel proud then? Because that's when the Declaration of Independence was created or whatever. That's true. Did you happen to learn about what's the Declaration of Independence? I know Ben Franklin was involved in it. Yeah. Do you think that the Declaration of Independence is a good way to represent America? Yes. Yes. Okay. I would agree. Can you think of a time when you felt like you weren't proud to be an American? Um, maybe there would be something that happened around our country that made you not proud to be an American or someone was treated a certain way that you thought was unfair that might have made you not proud to be an American or there may have been an unfair treatment. Hold on. Hold on. Did it have to be in my lifetime? No, it could have been before. Sure. Um, when African American people could do the same thing as white people. Like they couldn't think out of the same water fountain. They couldn't go to the same elevators. They couldn't, they weren't treated fairly. Yeah. That's one. You don't feel proud of that? No. Do you feel like that's a moment that represents our country well? No. No. Okay. My next question. Are there any things that you've heard of that make you feel that same way? Like you've described that it sounds like it's unfair. Do you think it's unfair that they're treated that way? No. Something important was when Martin Luther King, Jr. went on his march to Washington, D.C. Do you feel proud looking back at that? Yes. Good. Okay. Do you want to go back to our first question? Oh, gosh. You got this. Okay. Okay. I'm going to ask it again. What does being American mean to you? Being free. That would be one. I think that's all I have. Being free. I mean, you talked about the Declaration of Independence. Does being American, do you mean having rights? Yeah. And having, yeah, freedom? Unless you're a child. Unless you're a child. That's true. Okay. That's actually kind of my next question for you, which is, do you feel represented in America? And that can be in, you know, the stories, the news stories you hear. That can be in, you know, the people that you know around you. Like, do you feel like you belong in America and that you are represented? Yes. Yes. Do you have anything more to say about that? No. No? In what ways do you think kids have a voice? In what ways are kids' opinions heard for important decisions that are made in America? I don't know. Do you think of any specific examples? I remember something, but I don't remember at the same time. Yeah. I can't think of anything. That's okay. Because I would bring that brought back to my mind. Okay. Have you talked about freedom in school? No. No. I have a question for you, Scott. Yeah, we did a Pledge of Allegiance every year. Yeah. If you haven't learned about freedom and the Declaration of Independence in school a lot, how do you know that those things exist? Well, our teachers have done a brief example of it, but we haven't really full-on talked about it as a lesson. Was it yesterday? I think it was yesterday. Yeah, it was yesterday. When it was, what's it called? Patriotism? Patriotism. Yeah, we read a book about, it's called The Harvey Fireboat. And then we talked about the Twin Towers falling. And how there was four planes, but two planes made contact with the buildings. One was going to the, what's it called? The Pentagon. Yeah, the Pentagon. And then one crashed in the field on their way back to wherever they were heading. And then we talked about the memorial they had there. Do you think that when you learned about that, did that make you, like, did that feel like something that was, like, important to American history? Yeah. Yeah. And do you feel like that represents who we are as a country? I don't know. Did they explain to you where those planes came from and why all of that happened? No. Maybe ask your mom to explain it to you afterwards, because it's pretty important and I think you'll enjoy hearing about it. Okay, I have another question. I think you said something about Afghanistan. Afghanistan? Yeah. Yeah. Has there ever been anything you've seen on the TV or read about that, maybe things that happen in a different country that make you think, hmm, I'm thankful that I don't have to live around that in Nebraska or in the United States, or I'm thankful I'm an American and I don't have to experience that. Has there ever been anything you've seen like that? Um, was it last year's census? Um, there were these two countries who had wars, right? It was, like, Russia and something else. Mm-hmm. Are you getting it, Russia? And... That's dope. Were you thankful that that wasn't happening in the United States? Yeah. Mm-hmm. Do you know why it doesn't happen in the United States? No. Because we've positioned ourselves as what they call a superpower, and we have so much power and protection. Protection. Other countries don't want to mess with us. Don't even bother. Yeah. And, like, being American Scout means that you, like, are already without doing anything in a better position for later in life than most other people. Right. Which is crazy to think about, because you didn't pick to be born in Nebraska. Or the United States. Okay, I have another question for you, Scottie. Go ahead. So, how do you think being from Nebraska changes the way you look at America? Um, I have no clue. Describe to me what other... How different it is to live in an enclosed state? Mm-hmm. Super low and locked. Yeah. But it's interesting to live in somewhere like New York or somewhere like California instead of living in Nebraska. Well, Nebraska is probably safer than New York or California. Right. I think feeling safe is a feeling of freedom. Yeah. Mm-hmm. So you think you feel more free, and you have more... Not rights, necessarily, but you have more freedom in your life because you get to live in Nebraska. Yes. I agree with that. Okay, I have one last question for you. Even though our state is kind of boring. I don't think it's boring. Well, that's because you live somewhere else now. I've always lived somewhere else. And a lot of places. Well, lived or traveled in a lot of places. So it warms my heart to hear her say that. Nebraska is like home. Oh. Are you crying? Okay, Rob. You're going to have to leave. No. I'm watching. Okay. Stop. Be nice. Oh, Scoutie. Okay, Scout, I have one more question. You're still crying. Don't cry. Don't cry, Heather. Hey, guys. Okay. Last question. What do you think makes someone American? Well, Mom told me I can't answer with this answer. You can answer with that. You have to give a hard answer. Give me your answer. Give me your answer and then tell me the part. Eating a lot of food. Oh, my gosh. Get your little giggle out of here. That was my only answer. No, it's not. Go on. What was the question again? What makes someone American? Being from America. And how are people from America? What? Do you think being from America means holding a passport or is it more about what you believe in and, like, believing in freedom that makes you American? The second one. The second one. So do you think people who come to America, even though they're not supposed to be here, but they still believe in freedom, do you think those people are American? Yeah. Yeah? I would say that's a fair answer. They may not be from America, but they can still be. They can still be American? Yeah. Okay. Okay, that's all the questions I have, Scottie. Do you want to say anything else? Nope. Nope. How is YOLA or whatever?