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| Thurgood Marshall |
As for the intangible matters of humanity, the ‘land of liberty,’ the United States of America has been blessed with outstanding champions of freedom and equality in every generation. Our basic human rights have always been at the center of the issue. Abigail Adams warned of the evil of slavery and the neglect of women as intellectuals in our society. John Adams mentioned the corruption for power that was evident in the Continental Congress and wondered at what would become of the government as it further established itself in America. John Quincy Adams advocated for the basic human rights of the Native Americans and for Americans of black skin color. Frederick Douglass reverse engineered the answer to the main oppression that kept the human of black skin color enslaved, and went forth as a writer and public speaker for human rights unparralled in human history, save for Jesus Christ, Moses, and the prophets found in the Holy Bible. Before Thurgood Marshall became the first American of black skin color to be on the U.S. Supreme Court, he was a lawyer who used his mind to reshape constitutional law that it be inclusive in integrating people of black and white skin color in public life, including all community institutions. All of these were outsiders to the prevailing established order of their time.
With all the accomplishments achieved in the last one hundred years, it would be simple to assume that the United States of America is on a forward path for humanity. After all, we went from having horse-drawn carriages to creating space rockets landing us on the moon; from telephones to smart phones with dynamic capabilities; and from ice blocks in storage units to refrigerators that preserve our food. We created the internet and are now able to integrate our work environments with each other from our own homes. Life moves faster, comforts are increased, communication moves at the speed of light, and because of social media platforms on the internet, ideas can be shared with millions of people through the interface of their smart computer devices with incredible speed.
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| Space X Falcon 9 rocket launch |
But the weightier matters of our human rights have remained the focal point at the heart of the ideas of “who we are and what we stand for” as Americans. John & Abigail Adams lead with the idea of being just, selfless, and altruistic. Mr. Adams assured and exemplified a life of service to the ideas for the country, namely, that we educate our children to be learned sentinels of liberty, and that America be a land respecting the equal rights of each citizen. Where John Adams’s virtue fell short, his wife went forth: Abigail Adams unsuccessfully petitioned her husband through a number of letters to include ideas to be made into laws concerning the creation and protection of basic human rights for women. She was the first woman suffragist calling upon him on the need of an educated citizenry of women.
At no point has transformative salvation been ever initiated in government, but from outsiders who have championed worthwhile causes, themselves having changed the government. Martin Luther King, Thurgood Marshall, Frederick Douglass, the Woman Suffragist and John Quincy Adams are all cornerstone examples of outsiders who challenged the status quo and launched effective ideas, laying them succinctly with the written and spoken word.
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| John Quincy Adams / Diplomat, Secretary of State, President of the USA, Congressman |
It remains then that the power of the American people exists not in the US Supreme Court, not in the United States Congress, not in White House, not in our formidable military weaponry, and not in our seventeen governmental intelligence agencies, but in the ordinary people. Our liberties and freedoms rise and fall according to our understanding and advocacy of the ideas of "who we are and what we stand for, (David McCullough, The American Spirit)."
Parents and Educators: the responsibility to ardently maintain our freedoms is in the sharp exercise of your liberty to educate your children to be champions for their community, rather than champions for their political party. Sentinels of liberty are as strong and astute as the dynamism of the education they receive. A morally-grounded, responsible citizenry of critical thinkers who are an advocating people—are what make America great again.
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