Words from the past stand test of time
In honor of Presidents day, we look to our history
Presidents Day honors all U.S. presidents, both past and present. It started with the intention of honoring President George Washington’s birthday, on Feb. 22. President Abraham Lincoln also celebrated a birthday this month, on Feb. 12. Eventually, the day became Presidents’ Day with the intention to celebrate all U.S. presidents past and present.
In honor of Presidents Day, the Yuma Sun editorial board went to the presidential archives and researched past inauguration addresses by both men, wondering how their words would apply today.
Washington, in his first address, noted the importance of a free government, which still rings true over 200 years later.
“In these honorable qualifications, I behold the surest pledges, that as on one side, no local prejudices, or attachments; no separate views, nor party animosities, will misdirect the comprehensive and equal eye which ought to watch over this great assemblage of communities and interests: so, on another, that the foundations of our National policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private morality; and the pre-eminence of a free Government, be exemplified by all the attributes which can win the affections of its Citizens, and command the respect of the world,” Washington said upon taking office in 1789.
Washington faced an unusual challenge. There was no precedent. Instead, he bravely chartered new waters as the first person to hold that office.
Lincoln too faced unique circumstances.
Upon taking office, he faced a country in the midst of a schism, a nation once united had been cleaved by slavery.
And yet, despite those challenges, Lincoln held firm in his faith in our country and the importance of our common bonds.
As civil war loomed, Lincoln closed his first inaugural address in 1861 with this statement: “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.”
Later, as the Civil War raged on, Lincoln’s second inaugural address touched on the importance of unity, with these words that are now inscribed on the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
“With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds…”
Today, as we observe Presidents Day, we honor the spirit of bravery and unity that have helped our forefathers guide our nation through history.
Unsigned editorials represent the viewpoint of this newspaper rather than an individual. Columns and letters to the editor represent the viewpoints of the persons writing them and do not necessarily represent the views of the Yuma Sun.