The President and the Moral Imperative
Freedom of Speech series part 1 of 4 -
Starting today, and for the next four days, I invite you to join me on a journey. We will step back in time with the hopes of finding inspiration to remind us of some of the greatest attributes of our nation.
Our expedition will begin, 80 years ago, on January 6, 1941, as President Franklin Delano Roosevelt stood before a joint session of Congress to deliver his 8th, and perhaps most important State of the Union Address.
Just 11 months later, America would be forced to enter World War II after Japan’s horrific attack on Pearl Harbor. In the midst of an increasing global conflict and soon to be all-out fight for our national survival, the President reminded the nation of the ‘moral imperatives’ that we stood for.
In the final paragraphs of the speech, FDR explained that America as a nation wanted to see a world that was based on “four freedoms.” The freedom of speech, the freedom of worship, the freedom from want, and the freedom from fear. Values that not only found their origins in the hearts and minds of America’s founding generation, but were also articulated in the amazing documents that created our unique form of government.
Later on in the midst of the war, this 1943 painting, which will be the focus of the rest of my writings this week, took the Presidents words and set them to canvas. This famous painting reminded us, in the midst of the growing number of deaths of American soldiers overseas, and the supreme sacrifices that we were making as a nation at home, of the collective and deepest values that bind us together.
The values that we were fighting for back then remain vital for our survival today. Join me for the next four days as we explore all four parts of this series on freedom of speech.
I have two links listed below, where you can read FDR’s State of the Union or even choose to listen to it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yD32o5zqe7M
https://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=70...
May God bless you with a super day today & check in tomorrow for part II.