Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- The U.S. marks 250 years since the Declaration of Independence, highlighting unity's importance.
- Experts stress learning from history to understand current divisions and shared principles.
- Citizens are encouraged to read founding documents and engage in civic participation for future impact.
SALT LAKE CITY — From sea to shining sea, these United States of America are marking a milestone — 250 years since the Declaration of Independence. That founding document — along with the U.S. Constitution — remains unique in the world. As if they were written for times like these.
"The Constitution was made for an incredibly diverse people who weren't always going to get along," said Tyson Reeder, an assistant professor of history at Brigham Young University.
"I think any nation that has committed to the principle of free expression and legitimate dissent is going to experience conflict," said Professor Eric Hinderaker. He is chairman of the History Department at the University of Utah. Sharon McMahon is an author and speaker, often called "America's Government Teacher," who said, "That is what the founders understood unity to mean: shared purpose. They weren't afraid of disagreement."
All believe history can be helpful in understanding what we are experiencing today. "It's useful to go back in time and learn what brought the Republic to sometimes near the brink of collapse," Reeder said.
Documents defining America stand strong
Americans have lived through times of division, unrest and tragedy. The Civil War and slavery, the Civil Rights movement, President Kennedy's assassination, assassinations of his brother Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., Watergate and the resignation of a president, protests over the Vietnam War, protests over immigration today and much more.
But, our experts say, we have always been able to find what unites us. "The Republic survives because there is some united sense of underlying values that they're committed to," Reeder said.
McMahon added, "Unity does not mean agreement. It did not mean agreement at the founding, and it still doesn't mean agreement today. Yes, there are ways we can find common ground; that's absolutely true. But unity means shared purpose."
Are we losing that vision of what unites us? McMahon said, "The majority of Americans on both sides of the political spectrum are concerned about the direction the country is headed."
Hinderaker added, "… that doesn't negate the sense of shared principles. It's really, I think, in many ways, a product of the shared principles that you know that the United States has always stood for."
The 24-hour news cycle
Have social media and the 24-hour news cycle affected our ability to see clearly? "There's a difference between being, staying engaged and staying informed and being overwhelmed, " McMahon said. And learning from those who came before us can be valuable.
"'How do I have difficult conversations with people with whom I disagree? How do I continue to stand up for liberty and justice?' If we study history, we can gain from their knowledge, from their wisdom, from their strength, from their fortitude," she said.
What brought those early Americans together was the idea of the rule of law, consent of the governed and individual rights.
"The Constitution of the United States was not created for Americans when they're at their best. It was created for Americans when they're at their worst," Reeder said.
"When we're at our most disagreeable with one another, when we have no shared vision for the future, when we are suspicious of one another as Americans."
Looking to the future
How do they feel as they look to the future? "Hope is the belief that the future is not yet finalized and that we get to impact how the future will end up," McMahon said. "So, I absolutely do have hope because hope is choice."
"I encourage my students to be improvers, and part of being an improver, it's founded on hope," Reeder said.
"I hope that students leave our classrooms at the U. and classrooms everywhere, feeling the significance of civic participation," Hinderaker said.
So, how should we, as citizens, prepare ourselves for the 250th anniversary? The historians who spoke to KSL said we should read the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, including its amendments.
