Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America

This final essay is a conclusion to the collection, and Lalami opens it by quoting Thomas Jefferson. She notes that his claim of equality is not matched by his own ownership of enslaved people and compares this contradiction with modern Americans who argue for equality while supporting laws and politicians that maintain systemic discrimination. Reviewing the ways in which citizenship is conditional for many Americans, Lalami discusses voting as a semipermanent right that mass incarceration takes away from millions of people.

Lalami proposes a variety of ways in which citizens should be treated and the rights they should have, such as access to reliable information, healthcare, and bodily autonomy. She also mentions freedoms that citizens should have: freedom from harassment, freedom of religion or to abstain from religion, and freedom of movement without impediments. Lalami expresses anxiety at declaring these interests but holds hope for the future, quoting Frederick Douglass as she does in the title of this essay: “I do not despair of this country” (164).

Cautioning against despair, Lalami notes that giving up hope means giving up on progress. While the tasks of removing and replacing existing social structures may seem daunting, Lalami encourages the reader to continue fighting for justice and equality.