Political Memes

That’s how it starts, but it ends in the same hell. Once you decide your country stands for something, you inevitably stop seeing how it has failed at doing that thing for centuries.

This is a non-sequitur. There's nothing stopping someone from seeing what a country stands for and how it has failed to live up to those ideals. People can in fact walk and talk.

...So when people talk about freedom and equality as a U.S. value, when they talk about the melting point, they have to pretend the slaves don’t exist.

No one has to ignore our history or pretend the prison industrial complex doesn't exist to understand that we stood for equality. In fact, it's the other way around. It's the people who ignore and even rewrite our history who fail to understand America is a melting pot.

Another way of looking at it is, “You might say your country stands for this ideal, but when we find massive examples of it failing, then you’re arguing with reality. You might wish your country stood for it, but it doesn’t, at least not now. Quit lying to yourself.”

Except there are massive examples of it succeeding. The US ended slavery and gave voting rights to women. So it is your argument arguing with reality.

When we lose sight of the fact our country stood for something we end up in a nationalist christo-fascist dictatorship. Championing freedom and justice for all is how we stave off the division employed by fascists.

Pretending the US didn't stand for anything is an agreement with the fascists. They believe America has always been a white christian nation state and now it is one. Your argument is agreeing with their lie. The only way to defeat the fascists is to believe in the truth.