Richard Wilbur is one of our greatest poets. 22 years ago, he wrote a fine long poem for the centennial of the Statue of Liberty. These two stanzas from that poem move me still, and they describe perfectly a most imperfect and yet not-unpraiseworthy country. If the great E.M. Forster could give two cheers, not three, for democracy, then we who call ourselves citizens of the world first can give at least one solid cheer for the USA.
From all that has shamed us, what can we salvage?
Be proud at least that we know we were wrong,
That we need not lie, that our books are open.
Praise to this land for our power to change it,
To confess our misdoings, to mend what we can,
To learn what we mean and make it the law,
To become what we said we were going to be.
Praise to our peoples, who came as strangers,
Praise to this land that its most oppressed
Have marched in peace from the dark of the past
To speak in our time and in Washington’s shadow,
Their invincible hope to be free at last…
Be proud at least that we know we were wrong. And only those, perhaps, who acknowledge the depth and the scope of the wrongs can have an honesty to their pride.
I’m not sure that everyone knows or is convinced that we are wrong when it comes to so many things. I can’t help but think if more people who live in this country were aware of the in justices that have been caused a least partially by this country the world would be a diffrent place. Also so much more is required than knowing we are wrong. Sorry I’m so pesamistic—but this is just the way I feel. On the other hand I do feel like blogs such as this are a step in the right direction.
Catie.
On balance, have we done much good?
define good. and who is we?
Some years ago, I encountered an college undergrad at a high school graduation open house.
He mentioned his (non-history) professor had asserted that the reason the US didn’t use the atom bomb on Germany but only on Japan was a matter of racism.
I encouraged the kid to look up the dates of the Trinity blast, the bombing of Hiroshima, and VE day. He, being a product of modern education, needed to have the first one and the last one explained. I presume he was smart enough to avoid confronting his professor with the results of his research, but I like to think of him sharing the good news with his classmates.
Point is, we all know more than it is sometimes convenient for others that we should know.
Oh, hell. Ended slavery. In one long lifetime, this country went from a society in which it was nearly unquestioned to a society in which it was an obscenity, and spent the lives of 600,000 good men in the process.
Helped free Europe, provided the Marshall Plan.
Put US cities on the block as ransom for the Sovs invading Europe.
Our treatment of the indigenous personnel is better than, say, black Africa’s treatment of the Khoisan. Should give them a break, though. The Khoisan are all dead, or in the Kalahari, so it’s hard to give them any casino licenses.
Given that three to five times as many blacks were taken east out of Africa to the Middle East and the littoral of the Indian Ocean than came west to the Americas,there ought to be someplace like Jamaica, or Alabama around there, for heaven’s sake. There isn’t. What happened?
We provided adult supervision to the Balkans when the Europeans and the UN couldn’t.
Huge improvements in medicine.
And, for some reason, many people want to come here.
Cautious in our dealings with Mexico. We only took the part with the good roads (old Mexican joke). And we did so well with it, that Mexicans come there to better their lot as is impossible in the part we didn’t take.
That will do for a start.
Ok fair enough, Richard. I just feel like many Americans are offten overly nationalistic and are convinced that we can do no wrong. I feel we must always carefuly analyze our actions.
The poem Hugo posted suggests that we are able to see when we are wrong—based on recent actions of this country and political retoric I’m not completly convinced that we truly think enough about our actions or understand the mistakes we have made in the past.
Also, Hugo, What is the full title of this poem, I’d be interested in reading all of it.
“On Freedom’s Ground”, found in most of the Wilbur anthologies.