Independence Day - remembering the cost of self-government, equality

  • Published
  • By Maj. Theodore Richard
  • 71st Flying Training Wing Staff Judge Advocate
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  This year's Independence Day has a special significance as an anniversary of both the birth and rebirth of our Republic. Yet, on this anniversary of American independence it may appear to some that we live in a highly polarized political environment.

Many divisive issues appear to create insurmountable differences between us. As dramatic as today's disagreements appear to be, they pale in comparison to that period of our history a century and a half ago.

July 2013 marks the 150th anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg, a decisive battle in the American Civil War. Not only was it a turning point in the conflict, but it was the bloodiest single battle in American military history. Many events led up to this point in history.

The seeds of discord can best be attributed to the contradiction created by Americas founders in declaring, "all men are created equal," while permitting the continued existence of race-based slavery. As this nation grew, the contradiction grew more intolerable.

By the 1850s, the political question of slavery was tearing America apart. In 1856, Congressman Preston Brooks was upset about a speech delivered by Senator Charles Sumner. The congressman approached Senator Sumner two days later and beat him over the head at least thirty times with a gold-headed cane while the senator's legs were trapped under a desk.

In 1859, John Brown and his followers attempted to start an armed revolt among slaves with a raid on a government arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Va.

The 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln triggered sucession of the southern states. At the heart of the deep-seated hatred during this era were the questions of slavery and racial equality. More Americans died in this war than all other American military conflicts combined.

But for President Lincoln, the issue was also whether or not democracy could exist. Could a meaningful democratic system ever govern if it could be dissolved whenever people disagreed with who was elected? The answer, of course, was an unequivocal "No!"

As President Lincoln so eloquently explained in the Gettysburg Address, the United States fought the Civil War to preserve and protect the relatively new American democracy, "conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."

Moreover, President Lincoln resolved "that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom - and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

The Civil War ended the question of slavery once and for all. Unfortunately, it took well over the next century to fully achieve the promise of equality.

On July 4 we celebrate the courage of our revolutionary founders to declare independence and establish a democratic republic based on the principle of equality under the law. This year we have occasion to celebrate the struggles subsequent generations have made in achieving that promise of equality.

These struggles have involved the immense cost of American blood and treasure, but the fundamental promise of self-government and equality remain intact.