John Cena’s ‘Love Has No Labels’ PSA Inspires Me as Someone on the Autism Spectrum

“This year patriotism shouldn’t be about pride of country. It should be about love.” – John Cena

This was one of the main messages WWE superstar John Cena shared during a new Ad Council ad titled, “We Are America” that aired on the Fourth of July as part of the Love Has No Labels campaign. In the PSA, Cena is seen walking around a small town speaking straight to the camera about what it means to be patriotic.

One of the statistics he said that really resonated with me is that there are currently 319 million U.S. citizens, 27 million of them are disabled (Editor’s note: While this is the stat in the PSA, it may not be factual. In the U.S. 27 million women are disabled, but it’s estimated 53 million adults have a disability in the country) — and almost half the country belongs to minority groups. As someone who currently lives with a disability in autism, I believe these statistics truly show how diverse of a community we actually have. These are numbers I constantly share in my community as a disability advocate.

I’m inspired by John Cena for taking the time out to do this PSA because it shows us all we are not alone in this effort to spread acceptance for people who may be considered slightly different than the norm. I thank him for using his celebrity and platform to support the cause and making a difference for those who may be considered different.

A line in the PSA that Cena said couldn’t be anymore true: “This year, patriotism shouldn’t just be about pride of country, it should be about love. Love beyond age, disability, sexuality, race, religion and any other labels, because the second any of us judge people based on those labels, we’re not really being patriotic, are we?”

For me, this message is not something we should only be promoting as part of Fourth of July but all year round. Not only in America but around the world. He concludes by saying, “Remember to love America is to love all Americans because love has no labels.”

I hope you will remember this message every day because our community will be much better for it.