To my fellow Americans from abroad: Don’t let our democracy fall to authoritarianism | Opinion

Listening to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA” always stirs emotion. No other song inspires patriotism quite like it. Even Donald Trump has enmeshed himself with the song in such a way that causes people to perceive that the love they feel for America can be summed up in his persona.

As a native Kansan living in Austria, when I hear the lyrics, “And I’m proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free,” I pause at the use of “at least” in those poignant words. They imply we can find solace and gratitude in our certainty of freedom, while hinting at the idea that perhaps we see ourselves as the sole possessors of freedom.

Freedom includes the right to make personal choices, speak freely, practice any religion and maintain privacy. Yet, these rights are under threat from the conservative supermajority on our Supreme Court and the political party it aligns with.

In parts of the United States, women’s reproductive rights have been restricted — rights women in 120 other countries possess. This undermines women’s autonomy, exacerbates inequality and threatens health and safety, irrationally allowing an abuser to choose his child’s mother.

Freedom of speech is threatened by claims that everything will be OK — “if the left allows it to be,” in the ominous words of Project 2025 architect Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation — as if peace depends on conformity to a singular viewpoint. This manipulative stance invalidates differing opinions and fosters fear, while asserting the perpetrators’ superiority.

Despite the First Amendment’s separation of church and state, religious figures influence voting, politicians proselytize and states such as Oklahoma are imposing biblical teachings in public schools, despite the fact that about a third of the U.S. population does not adhere to any religion, Christian-affiliated or not.

America’s fundamental purpose is “to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity,” as the preamble to the Constitution states.

To secure our legacy of freedom, we must uphold the ideals of our Founding Fathers. “And I won’t forget the men who died/Who gave that right to me/And I’d gladly stand up next to you/And defend her still today,” as Greenwood sings. We can defend our constitutional freedoms only by voting to protect personal liberties that have long been championed by our forebears and admired worldwide.

US president reflects our character to the world

Our president is a reflection of our national character. Will we choose a diplomatic leader or a twice-impeached former president, found liable by juries of his peers for sexual assault and business fraud, and convicted criminally of fraud and election interference? While some revel in America’s turmoil, Europeans largely hope for the election of a Democratic candidate to strengthen alliances and to continue to lead the world successfully in navigating a global economic crisis.

The risk of an authoritarian shift is real, especially with a Supreme Court undermining personal freedoms, not to mention due process and equal treatment — negating the principle that no one, not even a president, is above the law. Donald Trump’s actions while in office — extorting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and inciting violence at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 20201 — highlight the need for a leader the world can trust, honor and respect. Diplomacy and integrity are not optional qualities in the leader of the free world.

A shift back to a so-called “America first” approach would destabilize world order and erode our leadership. If not the United States, then who? Our identity is rooted in promoting democracy, human rights , and global leadership — essential for peace and stability — and that is who the world depends on us to be.

Please don’t downplay the events unfolding in the U.S., which bear striking similarities to those here in Austria nearly a century ago. For nearly a decade, aggressive and confrontational rhetoric has strained our collective American psyche, normalizing bullying, indecency, fraud and unethical behavior that people in countries around the world find inexcusable.

Today, sensationalism too often overshadows fact-checking as as many media sources favor Trump’s flamboyance for ratings. However, media coverage does not determine a president’s qualifications.

This election presents a critical choice: to defend our way of life and uphold our role as a beacon of hope and freedom — or to adopt an ultra-conservative ideology that threatens personal liberty and international relations, underpinned by recent Supreme Court decisions that collectively erode core American ideals.

Voting for candidates who believe in and champion democracy upholds the ideals envisioned by our Founding Fathers. As the song tells us, “‘Cause the flag still stands for freedom/And they can’t take that away.”

With love for my country, from Vienna, God bless the U.S.A.

Kim Brening Solomon is a Kansas native currently residing in Vienna, Austria. She is an author and former editor of the fashion and lifestyle magazine Fab L’Style.