Six years ago in another venue, I made a list of what I thought were the 10 greatest moments in American history. Looking back, I decided there were two others that needed to be mentioned, but I didn’t want to remove any of the original ones.
So I dropped my original No. 10 to 12th place and put my additions in at 11 and 10. The first nine remain unchanged.
Here’s my new list:
12. Creation of the National Park System in 1916 — This is when Americans decided that we wanted to preserve some of our scenic beauty. A lot of people credit this to Theodore Roosevelt, who was a great voice for conservation, but it happened late in Woodrow Wilson’s first term.
11. Presidential election of 2008 — This isn’t anything specific about Barack Obama. I think he will be remembered as a fine president, but that’s not my reason for including this event on the list. No, the election of 2008 was the first time any free, Western nation elected a president who came from a minority of less than 15 percent of the population. That’s worth remembering.
10. The G.I. Bill of Rights — As World War II wound down, Congress passed a law that did more than anything else to create postwar prosperity for those who fought the war. Veterans were given the opportunity to get a college education, to buy homes at low mortgage rates and to get loans to start their own businesses. Maybe the single greatest example of what was to become a cliche — supporting the troops.
9. I Have a Dream — It was August 28, 1963, when Martin Luther King gave his amazing speech in Washington, D.C. His words resonate still today.
8. The Alamo — A total of 179 men gave their lives for Texas and freedom when they could easily have surrendered or retreated. They stayed and fought even though they knew they were going to die. Along with the Normandy landings and a few other beachheads in World War II, perhaps the best example of American bravery and sacrifice.
7. The Marshall Plan — America rebuilt Europe after World War II, possibly the most generous thing one nation ever did for others. Along with Lend-Lease, which Winston Churchill called the most unsordid act by a nation in history, the primary reason Western Europe is free today.
6. The Moon Landing — We didn’t go to build military bases, we “came in peace for all mankind.” We set a goal, worked it and achieved it.
5. Women’s Suffrage — In 1920, nearly 150 years after the Declaration of Independence, we decided that if all men were created equal, that might include women too.
4. Emancipation Proclamation — Abraham Lincoln really only freed the slaves in the South with this one, but it was an incredible symbolic step saying that no man should own another. Slavery has been called “America’s Original Sin,” but Lincoln not only saved the Union, he was the president who got the 13th Amendment through and abolished slavery in the U.S.
3. Civil Rights Act — It took nearly 200 years, but in 1964 we finally decided that maybe non-whites were created equal as well. We’re still working at it.
2. The Constitution — It has worked for 211 years now, which is quite an accomplishment. It was flawed but still brilliant, a framework for a great nation. It has been said that 500 years from now, there are three American creations for which we will be remembered — jazz music, baseball and the Constitution.
1. Declaration of Independence — “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal and that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” The words still are thrilling after 234 years.
There’s my list.
Tomorrow, we’ll look at the other side of American history — the 12 worst things in American history.