The right-wing nationalist way is by imagining a nationwide community whose organizing principles are arrogant superiority and a right to dominate others. These are the United States of “America First” and “freedom fries” and “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue” and “Make America Great Again.” (These formations often try to dominate other internal groups as much as they are directed outwardly at different nations.)
But one could also harness the same instinct towards a much more decent set of beliefs — a national community organized around principles of equality, freedom, and warm feeling towards one’s fellow citizens. Such an American identity might be centered around the Declaration of Independence, the Reconstruction Amendments, the Statue of Liberty, and the New Deal.
Such a left-wing nationalism would recognize the moral personhood of all humans, but it would also recognize the limits of American power. It is just an inescapable fact that the United States can’t help everyone in need around the world. Attempting to impose democracy by force results in bloody catastrophe. Even simple economic aid has often backfired.
That is why allowing immigration — particularly that of helpless refugees — would be a high priority under this type of nationalism.
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