Doug Brinkley on America at 250: History tells us hoping for unity is not futile

Two 100 and 50 years aft the Founders enactment their lives connected the enactment and their signatures connected the Declaration of Independence, it's casual to hide however adjacent it came to not happening astatine all.

On the battlefield, American patriots were spilling their humor for the origin of freedom. The thirteen Northern and Southern colonies were divided connected the question of slavery, and the nationalist was divided connected whether to question independency successful the archetypal place. But connected July 2, 1776, arsenic the mighty British service sailed into New York Harbor, the delegates successful Philadelphia's Independence Hall voted yea. It was done. Freedom was ours.

But it wasn't rather truthful simple. The state we won from the British, we would agelong withhold from women and Black people. That state was besides denied Native Americans, whose onshore our forebears took by unit and coercion. And outer attacks person tested our nationalist resolve.

But our state is tested astir grievously erstwhile we crook connected ourselves. A bitter civilian warfare cleaved our federation successful two, arsenic did the conflict for civilian rights a period later. It whitethorn look similar acold comfortableness successful our fiercely-polarized times, but instrumentality it from me: we person survived worse. Much worse.

As we observe the 250th day of American independence, whitethorn we let ourselves to anticipation against anticipation that our divided federation tin find unity. May we intermission to convey the Founders, imperfect men who gave america not conscionable the acquisition of freedom, but the work to sphere it. 

And whitethorn we signifier those American virtues of tolerance, compromise and perseverance, successful the anticipation of mending the American tapestry wherever it is frayed.

Some days that anticipation tin look futile. History tells america it is not.

     
For much info:

• "Silent Spring Revolution: John F. Kennedy, Rachel Carson, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and the Great Environmental Awakening" by Douglas Brinkley (HarperCollins), successful Hardcover, Trade Paperback, eBook and Audio formats, disposable via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org
• douglasbrinkley.com

      
Story produced by Robert Marston. Editor: Jennifer Falk. 

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In:

• America astatine 250