American Hospitality
A reflection on how we treat ourselves.
American Hospitality, and the story presented here, is the culmination of eight years of research. The facts it reports and the phenomena they represent are objectively problematic. It is the story of where we’ve been and what could happen if we follow the paths ahead to the left or to the right. There are advantages and disadvantages to both and I do not intend to tell you who to vote for or what specific policy choices you ought to support.
Every story carries a moral; every story serves to make a point. The expectation with every social awareness project is for the filmmaker to proffer a view they wish the audience to adopt. This is my view:
America is in pain.
Our divisions along political, religious, economic, and social lines have twisted us up so tight, that some have taken to murdering their fellow Americans. We’ve blocked friends on social media, abstained from family get-togethers, limited our travel choices, and altogether stopped bothering to talk with those we see as "other" because we’re either too angry for words or simply just feel like we’re wasting our breath.
We protest to demonstrate, commiserate, and to find inspiration, hope, and fellowship while screaming into the void between concerned glances at rooftops and open windows only to retreat to the comfort of endless scrolling, page turning, and hand wringing as we await the next cycle of bad news that never seems to end.
All of this is a problem.
To solve it, we’re going to have to talk with each other; we’re going to have to accept each other in dialog. That conversation needs to happen now. Otherwise, it is going to happen at the tail end of a long and devastating conflict that, regardless of outcome, will result in great loss to all of us in one way or another. So wouldn’t it be ideal to start finding a way to reconcile our differences now?
I have no miraculous insight. Other than to vote and share your thoughts with your representatives, I don’t know what the solutions are to the problems we face as a country. But what I do know is that when two people harbor some basic level of care for each other, they’re much more likely to hear what the other has to say. And that is a step in the right direction.
The point of this project, as you see it here, is to share the way I arrived at the conclusions I am about to share with you, and to propose five ways I think we can move in the right direction; to a future that is brighter and more prosperous for all:
1. Vote your voice. Our country is only as strong as your participation.
2. Got an idea? Share it with your representatives.
3. Abandon hate. It serves no master and cares not for those who stand in its way.
4. Guide your decisions by love and compassion; treat others the way you'd wish to be treated.
5. Health is our greatest wealth. Strive for peace over profit and compassion over cruelty.
The time for healing has come. I, for one, am ready to commit to choosing love.
This is American Hospitality.
And it starts with Motel 6.