Despite the risk of evoking an “OK, Boomer” response, the gradual ebbing of freedoms we take for granted as Americans, accelerated in response to COVID-19 has reached a critical stage. Let’s define the generational divide as follows.
* World War II/Post-War – Born 1922-1945
* Baby Boomers – Born 1946-1964
* Generation X – Born 1965-1976
* Millenials (Generation Y) – Born 1977-1994
* Generation Z – Born 1995-2012
This discussion groups the first two and the last three (Generations X/Y/Z). For the benefit of the first two, let’s quote Lee Greenwood:
‘Cause the flag still stands for freedom
And they can’t take that away
And I’m proud to be an American
Where at least I know I’m free
For the last three, Lin-Manuel Miranda:
Raise a glass to freedom
Something they can never take away
No matter what they tell you
Taking Freedom for Granted
For the first time in my (Boomer) life, I no longer take freedom for granted, nor do I believe that it cannot be taken away. Freedom defined as personal liberty, exempt from external control, interference, regulation; the power to determine one’s own action free of restraint. Freedom up to the point where it infringes on the rights of others or violates limits related to public order. Not limited to that which government can impose, but also individuals and entities.
In 1964, Ronald Reagan stated the following: “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.” Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman noted that “Freedom is very far from being the natural state of mankind; on the contrary, it is an extraordinarily unusual situation.” We may have missed these and other signposts – the ones likely to suffer most are Generations Y, Z and those beyond.
A Beacon to All Who Value Freedom
America’s Founding Documents – the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution – were written so that they could be read and understood by ordinary citizens. The Declaration marked our separation from Great Britain, the birth of the nation: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Signing the Declaration was viewed as treason, punishable by death. Benjamin Franklin commented “Indeed we must all hang together; otherwise we shall most assuredly hang separately.”
The ratification of the Constitution more than ten years later was far from a forgone conclusion. Those who have seen the Broadway Musical Hamilton should recall its enthusiasm regarding The Federalist Papers written by John Jay, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton, more than two-thirds of which were authored by Hamilton. These 85 essays were written in support of the Constitution, as nine of the 13 states would have to ratify if it were to take effect. New York, led by anti-Federalist Governor George Clinton, held out ahead of the June 1788 ratifying Convention in Albany. Without New York, the new nation would split into separate confederacies. Over the course of a month, Hamilton logically and eloquently attacked each anti-Federalist argument and bolstered by Virginia’s ratification, overwhelmed the opposition and the Constitution was approved.
The first ten Amendments to the Constitution were ratified on December 15, 1791 and are known as the “Bill of Rights.”
Fundamental Transformation of the United States
President Obama’s view of the Constitution differs from that of Hamilton. In a 2001 radio interview he described it as follows. “The Constitution is a charter of negative liberties, says what the States can’t do to you, says what the Federal government can’t do to you, but it doesn’t say what the federal government or the state government must do on your behalf.” He ran for President in 2008 voicing a message of “hope and change.” The phrase was like a blank canvas – questions posed seeking its meaning never seem to yield a consistent answer. He did intend for there to be change, but couldn’t be honest about his intentions and those of his Administration due to lack of popular support. This played out during the passage of Obamacare, which garnered not a single Republican vote. Prior to the election in 2008 he stated: “We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.” Fast forward to the 2020 election – Joe Biden took up the mantle. In May 2020, referring to COVID-19, he said: “And I truly think, if we do this right, we have an incredible opportunity to not just dig out of this crisis, but to fundamentally transform the country.”
Fundamentally transforming the country cannot be achieved without overtly or covertly rejecting principles stated in the Founding Documents. The 2019 New York Times’ 1619 Project written by Nikole Hannah-Jones argues that America’s true founding is August 1619 when slaves were first brought to Virginia, and that American history should be viewed through the lens of slavery. “The United States is a nation founded on both an ideal and a lie” she states, referring the the Declaration of Independence. To her credit, she also says that “black Americans believed fervently in the American creed” and this would include men like Frederick Douglas and Martin Luther King Jr. They, along with Abraham Lincoln, saw the Founding Documents as a statement of rights that still required action in order for their promises to be fulfilled. In his “I Have a Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial, Dr. King made reference to the Declaration of Independence as a creed whose true meaning was yet to be lived out. He described his dream as “…deeply rooted in the American dream.” He ended with a call to “Let freedom ring.”
The question for Nikole Hannah-Jones and others who believe the nation is fundamentally flawed, to include academia, entertainment, traditional media outlets and other left-wing groups, is where does the country go from here? In July 2018 the New York Time Editorial Board posited “America Started Over Once. Can We Do It Again?” That same year Time Magazine referred to Democratic Socialism as a “Viable Platform.” Senator Bernie Sanders is perhaps the best known elected official that espouses socialist policies, and his appeal to young people is undeniable. How would such a transformation take place? Undoubtedly, the Constitution and Bill of Rights would need to be reinterpreted, revised, or revoked.
Last edited: January 29, 2023