By Eric Lee
Harmony, MN
The story of America is expanding. What I grew up with is vastly different from what today’s children will grow up with. The story is growing, and it leaves us with a choice.
Growing up in the 1980s, we revered Christopher Columbus, and we learned glorious tales of the spirit of exploration, with the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. We spent precious little time on those who were hurt by the movements of history, particularly as it pertains to the United States. How little time did we devote to our history of slavery? How little did we spend on the Trail of Tears? And how much of that could even break through the story of Manifest Destiny, and a chosen people on a quest for freedom? How many were not included in that story?
Now, as we have access to so many more stories, those which reflect both the joys AND the pains of this nation of ours, we find ourselves at a crossroads. Our identity is coming into question, and some have difficulties with a changing view of our history. But to recognize our wounds is not to say that we are weaker, or less than we were. This simply gives us an opportunity.
It is only by recognizing the depth and richness of our history that we can begin to make amends. If we do not recognize the injuries that have been inflicted in our history, then how can we grow? How will we heal? To not recognize the contributions of ALL segments of this great nation is to turn our backs on the very promise of America, itself.
This nation is a great experiment, and if there is any one thing which defines us, and binds us, it is our Constitution. We are a work in progress, and we have the opportunity to be a beacon of freedom and justice in this world, the more we are committed to this more perfect Union. It is our responsibility. This government is ours. The society we agree to is ours, and it is incumbent on us to figure our way out of the impasse at which we find ourselves.
After all, what is the spirit of our Constitution? It seems to me it is aspirational. It is not concrete. It was never fixed, perfect, in one place and time. It is a promise. A promise which is very much alive, and which binds us to one another, and this, to me is the spirit in which we can grow, together, as Americans.
“We the People of the United States of America, in order to form a more perfect union…” Thus the Preamble to our Constitution begins. It does not promise a perfect union. The men responsible for this great document knew better than to offer perfection.
If we continue to look for ways to exclude some from the benefits of being American, we will only find ourselves with the question, “Who is deserving?” To which I would reply, “Who among us is truly up to the task of judging the worthiness of another human being?” It is long past time that we secure the ladders to opportunity, and to make sure that they are there for all.
We are, all of us, born into a situation. That situation may be one of plenty, and it may be one of hardship, and none of that is your fault. And we will never have any way to judge just what each of us is capable of, given opportunity and access, until it is too late. How many lives, how much benefit to society is wasted, leaving some of us without opportunity, without the security to discover how to contribute? Why shouldn’t we be deeply invested in one another’s success?
We have a choice. We can build our walls against one another. Or we can embrace one another, listen to and hear each other’s stories. And we can welcome one another. And to you, I say, “You are welcome.”