I should know. I’m one of them.

This pride and love of the Lone Star State have generated a relatively strong independence movement, and while it’s gone by many names over the past few decades, it’s currently known as “TEXIT.” Ask any given Texan outside of a major city as to whether or not the state should secede from the union and you’re more than likely going to get an affirmation of some degree.

Texans really don’t want to become like any other state in the nation. They especially don’t want to adopt another state’s politics…except maybe Florida, but that’s a recent development. Texas culture is highly unique, consisting of an amalgamation of cultures that fought, died, and worked together to make the state and its values what they are. Any Texan brought up in this culture wants to defend it vigorously, and is more than willing to break the state loose from the irresponsible and incompetent leadership of the United States.

The outspoken support of the TEXIT movement has, naturally, drifted into online spaces including social media sites where conversations take place on pages and forums. Naturally, the TEXIT movement ran afoul of the Meta Corporation and its most popular product, Facebook.

Facebook attempted to silence the Texas Nationalist Movement (TNM) and silenced links to its website, claiming that these posts violated community standards. The TNM turned around and filed a lawsuit against Meta in the State District Court in Jefferson County. Meta is attempting to bring this lawsuit out of the state and into federal court.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed an amicus brief in the lawsuit and challenged Facebook’s ability to censor Texans on the basis of H.B. 20 which stops big tech from censoring Texans on the basis of the users’ viewpoints. As a result, Facebook stopped censoring the TNM.

This fight is definitely ongoing, but even if you’re not a fan of the idea of Texas seceding, the Texas Nationalist Movement definitely deserves your support in this case, and not just on the matter of free speech.

It’s my firm belief that every state should have a decently strong nationalist movement of its own. This may sound as if I’m advocating that all states disband and the United States of America come to an end. This isn’t the case, at least not necessarily.

When you sign up to join the United States military you’re signing up to defend your country. This is true, but in your heart of hearts, what you’re really doing is signing up to do violent work in the defense and advancement of your home. Everything you do is ultimately in the service of your home, a place where your sons and daughters can be raised safely and given the best life you can give them, where your friends and family can thrive, and your community can live in peace and prosperity.

Each state is a cluster of communities, some bigger than others, and each with its own culture. It’s these cultures that come together to form the melting pot that is the United States of America, but before we can be a strong country you should be a strong state.

The advocacy for a strong state can come in a lot of forms, including a secessionist movement, but it’s all a state-first state of mind.

Meta’s interference with TEXIT isn’t just a violation of free speech and an exchange of ideas, but it’s interference in something that’s none of its business. Moreover, it’s an attempt to squash an idea based on state pride and freedom.

While it may seem backward to say that the TEXIT movement is healthy for the United States of America in the long run, it’s a movement based on keeping a state strong. A strong state is beneficial for the Union, and if more states had this kind of pride and lust for independence, the United States would be a lot healthier. We wouldn’t look to some people we’ve never met in a swamp somewhere on the eastern coast to guide us, we’d boil it down to our local leaders.

Besides, the issue isn’t necessarily the Union, it’s the abuse of this Union by politicians in an office far away.

Meta needs to stay out of the affairs of a state’s people.