dAVE wILSON

Independence Day 2020 brings the opportunity to reflect on our national strengths, our values and hopes. I suppose that in years past I would not have given so much thought to what the 4th of July meant to me as a kid, but in many ways I long for the way I felt as a ten-year-old. I was eager for the fireworks, sure, the picnics and parades, but I remember my pride and the sense of belonging that I experienced then. Seeing the flag, hearing speeches about this nation’s beginnings, I thought I knew what our country was all about. That we were united. One nation, under God, and all the rest. I remember reading for the first time, in that Declaration severing allegiance to an English king, what the founders wrote: “We mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.”

Over the years though, I came to understand that not every American enjoys the same benefits of that pledge, or felt my youthful sense of pride and unity. This has become a nation of haves and have-nots, where only the rich and powerful can expect to prosper. In fact, watching the way things are going, I see that only a few—the ones at the top—experience the advantages our founders hoped this nation could achieve. I think we can do better. I believe we can be that nation of honor and dignity, with liberty, yes, but also with justice, for all.

We are at a turning point. Change is coming whether we like it or not. The crisis we face is not simply that of race, or pandemic, but the crisis of division. We are no longer united in our goals, united in our commitment to one another.

It didn’t have to be this way. It seems to me that it is at this crossroads where we make our stand. We either decide right now to allow the extremes of passion to pull the country apart, or we actively move to form the “more perfect union” envisioned in that Declaration signed 244 years ago. We either continue in mounting distrust, divisiveness, and conflict, or we make the effort to find humanity and hope, even in the eyes of those who oppose us. I’m running for office because I believe it’s time to accept the challenge and the promise that we celebrate every 4th day of July.

Change is coming, vote for it.

   This year we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the success of the Women's Sufferage's campaign.   One hundred forty-four years earlier Abigail Adams complained to her husband John, who was involved in creating the framework for our government: " If particular care and attention is not paid the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by laws in which we have no voice or representation."  Women were not "given" the right to vote a hundred years ago, they fought for and won it.  

   Voting is an essential element of democracy.  Today we face a challenge to our democracy presented by stumbling blocks put up by some local and state governments which make it difficult for all citizens to register and/or cast their ballots.  

   On this Independence Day 2020 I hope we all pledge to respect and cherish our right and responsibility to vote, and encourage all eligible voters to do the same. 

Freedom in the Arboretum

Virtual Celebration

July 4, 2020

You’ve heard the phrase, “Justice delayed is justice denied”. On July 4, 1776 we united to declare, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of

Happiness”. Nearly 87 years later, on January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed "that all persons held as slaves are, and henceforward shall be free."

For many, the Declaration of Independence and the Emancipation Proclamation continued to be no more than just words on paper until June 19, 1865, the day recognized as Juneteenth, when Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were free. But what does it mean to be free?

In Spokane, on June 18, 1919, 143 years after our Declaration of Independence and 56 years after

President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, a jury was instrumental in beginning to overturn Jim Crow laws in our state which segregated people based upon the color of their skin.

Let that sink in. A jury, in Spokane, declared the policies of Spokane’s downtown Pantages Theater

violated rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution, brought words on paper to life, and

provided one more example of what it means to be free.

Theresa and I are mindful of the dedication of the Westbrook family, bringing us together across

partisan lines each year since 1962 to celebrate that which unites us. Today, as we celebrate our

Independence Day, may we continue to ask ourselves, not only what it means to be free, but how we, individually and collectively, may further the cause of freedom and justice for all.

With great appreciation and hope,

Dennis and Theresa Cronin

 Having been a public school teacher for 39 years, I have come to discover that the most important skills to teach our students is critical thinking  compassion and Integrity. I believe that these are foundational to justice and without justice true democracy cannot survive.

In the United States we are extremely concerned about The Bill of Rights, and that's as it should be. But wouldn't it be insightful to examine the concomitant Bill of Responsibilities?
Good conversation for developing critical thinking.