Not The America (Neil)

I moved to Australia a year ago after spending the prior 10 years in the US. Alongside being a South African, I consider myself a Californian, although not quite an American. I don't identify as Australian yet, but it's early days. 

I spent the last few weeks visiting friends in San Francisco. Every day while there, I was assailed with fresh violations by a regime intent on dismantling democracy and disregarding human decency. This is not the America that I fell in love with and the betrayal is heartbreaking. 

I attended the San Francisco Women's March and while I marvelled at the unity and love of a crowd 150,000 strong standing out in the cold and rain, I felt impotent. Here we all are and yet the lying, the hate, the corruption will continue unabashed. Sadness is appropriate - there is much to mourn right now. Obama's America, my America, is in flames, gutted by soulless mercenaries. What was, is no longer, and we need to fight for our ideals, not a continuation of the status quo. 

Despite my despondence, I hold my head erect, staring into the storm. My bravery is borrowed from the graciousness of those around me. The stranger at the Women's March who gave me his umbrella because I didn't have a rain jacket. The governments of San Francisco and California, who have said they will protect their citizens. The revellers at the Edwardian ball expressing their individualism and creativity. The protesters at the airport, three days in, chanting over and over again "refugees are welcome here". 

I am outside the US right now and my tenure as a US permanent resident can easily be revoked. I have some hard decisions to make on what I am personally willing to risk to stand up for what I think is right. I am not feeling brave or selfless, but I hope that I can fake it long enough to make it true.

Neil, a South African who has made America his home

taking a photo of Chinese New Year Celebrations in Sydney, Australia

--- Other posts by Neil ---

Finding Your Place(s) ; San Francisco

Florida

The Seven Years' War preceded WWI by 160 years (1756-63). It was fought between coalition led by France, and one led by Britain. Before the formation of the League of Nations, there was constant reshuffling and alliances to prevent dominance by any one power. The changing Balance of Power resulted in regular wars and traded control of territory. La Florida was the first major land claim by the European Colonisers of the Americas. British victory in 1763 gained them Florida, which was handed back to Spain after the American Revolutionary War. 1783 saw Spain's American colonies at their maximum size. Spain struggled to finance control and eventually ceded it over to the United States in 1821. The area had been a sanctuary for run-away slaves. Britain abolished slavery in 1833, and Spain in 1811. In 1845, Florida was admitted as the 27th state of the US and became a slave state. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery throughout the Union in 1865. 

Spanish American Colonies (1783)

Iowa

The first American Indians arrived in the area of Iowa around 13,000 years ago. The Louisiana Purchase of 1803 ceded control to the United States, after 130 years of French and Spanish colonial rule. The entire population of the Louisiana Purchase was 60,000, half of whom were African slaves. The US encouraged settlement and moving the indigenous people to the west. Following the Civil War, Iowa's rich farmland and the introduction of railroads in the 1850/60s saw population increase dramatically and passing 1 million. There are now 3.1 million people. The Great Depression and World War II shifted the economy from small holdings to larger farms and manufacturing. The counties of the three biggest cities Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Davenport were all won by Clinton in the 2016 Election, but urbanisation has left much of the state very sparsely populated. The Rural areas went Red, and the state backed the Republican party for the second time since 1984 (backing G.W.Bush in his second term).

United States Expansion

1803 - Louisiana Purchase

Ohio

One of the conditions for joining the United States was population. Disease and War wiped out much of the indigenous inhabitants of Ohio. It joined in 1803 with a just over 43,000 people. By 1850, there were about 2 million. By 1900, 4.2 million. By 1970, 10.7 million. Since passing 1 million people, growth per decade has ranged between 13.2% and 30.3% (excluding the WWII slump). Since around 1970, that has slowed to low single digits. Ohio is about the same size as Benin, a country in Africa, with a similar sized population as well (10.9 vs 11.6 million for Ohio). 27% of the state claim German ancestry, 14% Irish and 9% English. As a swing state, Ohio has switched from Red to Blue and back consistently with Reagan-Bush the last time the parties didn't change. Obama won 2,827,709 votes in 2012. Trump won 2,771,984 in 2016, but Clinton's share fell to 2,317,001. The last time Ohio didn't back the winner was Kennedy. 

Ohio Population Growth

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania has a population of 12.8 million. Almost the same as Guinea, a country on the west coast of Africa, and the urban area of Rio De Janeiro, in Brazil. It was one of the original 13 states of the United States, formed by a royal land charter King Charles II, the restored King whose father lost his head in the English Civil War. The charter was given to William Penn to repay a debt. Steel, logging, coal, textiles and other manufacturing attracted large streams of immigrants. Today, only 5.6% of the population is foreign born with 75% born in the state. 82% are Non-Hispanic White (v 64% for the US in total) with the growth in population in the state flattening since 1970. The last time the Republican Party won a majority was in 1988. In 2016, Trump received 2,912,941 (Romney '12 2,680,434) and Clinton 2,844,705 (Obama '12 2,990,274) votes.

White Non-Hispanic Population by State (2012)

Michigan

Michigan is home to the big three US auto companies - General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. Its population is just short of 10 million people, about the same size as Sweden or Seoul, South Korea. When Europeans arrived, the three largest indigenous tribes existed as a loose confederation of tribes called 'The Council of Three Fires' formed in 796 CE. As part of the Great Lakes region, it became a popular immigrant destination after joining the Union as the 26th state in 1837. The birth of the auto-motive industry at the start of the 20th century attracted migrants. By 1920, Detroit was the 4th largest US city. Massive growth continued through to the 1970s, around 20-30% per decade excluding the war years. Growth then slowed and the population decreased over the 10 years 2000-2010. 77% of the population is Non-Hispanic White with the four biggest ancestry groups being German (21%), Irish (11%), English (9%), and Polish (8%).

Election Results by Country (Red Trump - Blue Clinton)

Democratic Primary Results by County (Green Sanders - Yellow Clinton)

Wisconsin

Wisconsin has a population of 5.8 million people, slightly more than Singapore (which is the 113th largest country in the world) and about the same as the cities of Qingdao-Jimo (China), Houston (USA), and Luanda (Angola). It is the 20th largest state by population of the United States. Famous for cheese and known as 'America's Dairyland'. Britain won control of the area after the French and Indian War (1754-1763). Both France & Britain's primary interest was the Fur Trade. The United States gained control after the War of 1812 and it was admitted to the Union in 1848. At the time 63,000 of the population of 305,000 had been born in the state. A big wave of immigration between 1850 and 1900 the largest groups being Germans and Norwegians. 83% of the population are non-Hispanic White with the largest claimed ethnicity being German (43%), Irish (11%) and Polish (9%). The last time the Republican Party won more of the vote than the Democratic Party in Wisconsin was 1984, but the change came from a drop in blue (1,620,985 in '12; 1,382,210 in '16) rather than an increase in Red (1,407,966 in '12; 1,409,467 in '16).

Wisconsin