Episode 287: Happy Birthday America: Celebrating Freedom Around the World and with Philanthropy
It's a celebratory time here on this edition of Around with Randall. We close in at the time of recording, and when it's released at the moment where America will celebrate its 250th birthday, July 4th, we'll signal a remembrance of a time in which our forefathers founding fathers signed, declaring to the world independence the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia in 1776.
Today's episode is a little bit of a look at that, as I also dress for the occasion, but more importantly around what it's really all about. And it's not just a celebration of America's 250th birthday. What we're really talking about here, with a sense of reflection in such a monumental moment, is freedom. Freedom to be and do the things that we want.
And in so in many ways, what we celebrate on July 4th and throughout this year isn't just about America, it's about freedom itself. We have to keep in mind that the definition and I think, frankly, many Americans don't do this very well, that a majority of the world is has freedom. It's just designed a little bit differently from a governmental perspective to decisions that countries have made that certainly create certain restrictions.
And we have them in America as well that are different than who we are. The point is, is that freedom comes in many different ways, and it's just not an American story. And so today we want to talk about this idea of freedom and in the end, truly connect it to the idea of philanthropy. And while we'll spend probably a good portion of our time speaking about, looking at, kind of reviewing the thoughts of how it applies more in America than in most places, it is our birthday, so to speak, that you are going to have very similar thoughts if you're listening to me in other countries.
And as a result, what we really want to celebrate together all the time is the ability to be free. So let's start kind of at the kind of the big picture, top perspective. While, as I said, at the top, at the beginning, at the top of the of the podcast that we're celebrating America, and I'm certainly dressed for it today here on a round with Randall.
This is not an exclusively American value. The idea of freedom, democracy, a republic goes back to the ancient Greeks, and that freedom has amazing movement over the course of time, as mentioned. Romans and Greeks had freedom in various ways. So that's going back as far as if we go more modernly or modern times. We have the idea of the falling of, of monarchies in Europe over kind of the Middle Ages, more importantly, probably into the Renaissance.
Recently we had the end of apartheid in South Africa that we've had immense, particularly in the last 20 years, immense movements of democracy, of freedom in various ways throughout Eastern European countries. The Soviet Union collapsed, bringing freedom, and then could be argued that it was rescinded in some ways or in many ways. Modern struggles in places like Iran, Iraq, Hong Kong, Venezuela are all about freedom, although not accomplished in many of those cases.
The important distinction here is, is that freedom exists in different forms and degrees around the world. America does not have the sole torch when it comes to the idea of being free. We didn't invent this, but we are one of freedom's most influential, influential experiments. When the Declaration of Independence was signed, it was amongst the first times in history that people put forth the idea that they want to be self-governed and they're willing to fight and most importantly, die for it.
What we tend to forget when we think about the Declaration of Independence, signed July 4th in that very hot summer of 1776, is that had the Revolutionary War gone differently, these people wouldn't have been our founding forefathers. They would have been traitors and hung.
We need to concentrate on those that have given so much. One of my personal heroes, and I've never met him. So it's more of a distance and just total envy for his ability to think long term is Nelson Mandela. He serves, I believe, 27 years in Robinet Prison in South Africa for wanting and believing in freedom that when it doesn't go the way that freedom allows, you become a traitor.
There's risk, there's fear, and as a result, there can be consequences. And so it's also celebrating those who fight for that freedom. When we look at America to 50, it's a remarkable achievement. What we know is when we look at history, that from a constitutional kind of law or governance system, most democracies don't last this long. That doesn't mean we've got it all correct.
But America has survived. Whether that's the idea of war externally, civil war internally, economic collapse, political crisis, assassinations, social upheaval, dramatic changes in our in our demographics, internal fights for our own freedoms, i.e. those that were oppressed when the Constitution was signed in 18 1787 to think about minorities, women, to the idea of actually creating equality well beyond the passing of the 13th 14th amendments, 15th amendments after the Civil War to actually enact and realize more freedom.
We're a social and experiment, and that over time, freedom gets better when it's done in the right way, when it has the ability not to be a straight line. But if you look at it more longitudinally when done in the best ways, America screwed up a lot. But over time, we're better than we were. The question becomes, how do we make sure that freedom gets better in the next 250 years?
Enhances, grows. And don't forget our Constitution, not the Declaration of Independence. What we're celebrating. But the Constitution in 1887 said, we strive for a more perfect union. It's a journey that we never, never get tired of reaching out to, that we should never be satisfied with. Because more perfect in many ways means we're never perfect, but we strive to get closer to it.
I also want to talk for a moment, as we have seen an influx of wonderful visitors to our country with the World Cup. What I think is going to become, or as I record this a few days before, we'll continue to grow an interesting view of America. Right now, I think a lot of people believe that America is flawed, is going backwards, is not what it should be.
I'm not going to strike a political opinion here or at any time on a round with Randall around left, right or center, conservative, Liberal, Democrat, Republican, middle or liberal. The point is, is that I think sometimes our familiarity blinds us to how fortunate we truly are. These wonderful international visitors, journalists and fans, because of the way that we communicate with each other, are able to post their viewpoints of America, and many of them have taken the opportunity as the World Cup is here to travel throughout, and they're commenting on the American life that we take for granted that we don't always see because we're so busy.
From the simplicity of the waffle House to the various what we think of as tried and true landmarks of America, they're commenting on large cities and the diversity that occurs and small towns and how cool they are. They've talked about entrepreneurial spirit and energy and the idea of freedom to do things about building your own life. They've talked about religious diversity and also about how people can choose to do their own thing from a volunteer perspective, as well as the idea that they can.
We can express our views openly. Freedom. When it comes to the First Amendment speech, it's the ability. Several have commented that they're amazed at how we openly criticize our governmental leaders. Freddie Ado and others have really been on the forefront of this. As the global quote unquote football community has struck a sense of optimism, openness of America, and that they're encountering amazing things that we don't often talk about here.
Sometimes we need reminders that come from the outside because we've taken so much for granted. And this includes me. We don't take a moment and try to get a higher perspective, elevate 10,000ft to see the greater possibilities. We are 98% the same. If you love freedom, if you love the idea of having choice, as long as it doesn't hurt somebody else physically or monetarily, or hinder someone else in a devastating way, we need to realize that it's only the 2% that differentiates us, that there's many things that we all want, and we'll talk about those here in a minute that create this commonality in this experiment that we call the United States of America.
And as we look at July 4th, I think it's because I like history. Fascinating to think about the things that occurred on this amazing date. Certainly, the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia in 1776. Many people know that two of the most famous revolutionaries and architects of our country in its current form, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, died, dear friends, although they had had their moments in 1826, on the same day, July 4th, and then another revolutionary star heroine, James Monroe, who became president, died on July 4th, 1831.
Three of our first five presidents died on the day that celebrated America's birth. I also think from an artistic standpoint, Henry David Thoreau moved to Walden Pond. And if you and I'm not an expert like poetry, think about the fact that he moved on in 1845, the day of our independence. I believe that the most important day, other than the signing of the Declaration of Independence, actually, was July 4th, 1863.
Some of you may know real quickly that that's Gettysburg, but what also is not talked about very often is, is that was the near the end of the Battle of Vicksburg, which is on the Mississippi River, and that was led by Ulysses Grant and at horrific cost deaths of thousands of soldiers. The two battles reform the idea of a combined America.
It happened a couple of years later, but it was the moment where the war was one. It just hadn't been finished. You can look if you liked the idea of sports. I always think it's fascinating that on July 4th, 1939, Lou Gehrig gave his famous speech in Yankee Stadium, saying, I'm the luckiest man on this earth, luckiest man alive.
All these things are indicators of a repetitive idea of freedom, sacrifice, leadership that we don't take. We don't take as grateful as we should. This intersection of freedom and the moments that come from them. And we're back to this 98 two problem. We all want the same things. I mean, if I start listing things like we want safer communities, we want an opportunity for our children, we want meaningful opportunities to grow professionally and personally.
We generally want fairness. We want health and security. All those things are unified. We may not agree on how to do them, but nobody's against them. And this begins then, the sense of divisiveness, the idea that we are 98% the same is not something that sells well on social media, in the internet, on news shows, you get clicks by being negative, by being the 2%.
What I think freedom in this context should be, is a realization about how we're more the same than we are different. Freedom requires disagreement. Freedom requires different vantage points, but also is important to realize that freedom at its base is in these disagreements. But it doesn't make the other person the enemy. It just gives them a different perspective.
And freedom requires compromise. I'll spend the last minute or two in this unique Around with Randall podcast talking about what does all this have to do with philanthropy? It has a great deal. Philanthropy really can't work without freedom. They're deeply connected. Think about an autocratic, restrictive environment. Philanthropy, probably, and I'm almost guarantee still exists. But it's not robust.
It's hidden. So in our world, where we're very fortunate to enjoy freedom, where we're able to be free to gather, to organize, to advocate, to worship, to volunteer, to give, for the most part, without a lot of consequence, other than knowing that we may be making someone else's life in our world a better place. Philanthropy. Definition. Love of mankind.
Every nonprofit has the ability to express their freedom through what they do and that charitable gifts, fundraising, philanthropy at a on a financial perspective are acts of choice based upon that freedom that volunteers who show up and say, I want to make a difference as a board member or on the front lines of a nonprofit. What they're really saying is, I have agency, and I'll use it to improve this organization or my community in this way.
And that philanthropy exists in free people because they decide to care about something larger than just themselves. And in many ways, when we look at the people who have created this freedom and have defended this freedom, that is the essence of, as Lincoln called, the last full measure of devotion for those who are willing to die, to give me, you and others in this country and all around the world, the idea of freedom.
America turns 250, but perhaps the best way we can celebrate freedom isn't just by fireworks. It's by exercising freedom responsibly. It's about building stronger communities. It's about helping others because it's better than helping yourself. And it's about supporting things that you believe in that are going to make your community a better place. And it's about investing in the future, the next generation and beyond.
Freedom is not merely an absence of tyranny. Freedom is about an opportunity to choose what kind of society we want to create together. That is the celebration of America. And by the way, the celebration of freedom around the world. Freedom is not repeating, not the absence of tyranny. Freedom is all about with philanthropy as an option. Time. Dollars.
Energy, effort and opportunity to choose where our society goes. It is worth celebrating the 250th birthday of America, no matter where you are, because it's really not about us. It's about freedom, and it's about what freedom provides. And while there are those who will say, we've had other moments in our history of the 250 years that they're like, we don't know where we're going, what we're doing.
Freedom will exist. And thus so will America. And the idea that philanthropy can make it better by helping others is one of humanity's most powerful aspirations. Freedom, when we do it correctly, builds to make a better future. Philanthropy does the exact same. And in doing so, when we put the two together, we elevate our society, our world, to a more fantastic place with possibilities we can imagine for the generations to come.
Leaving the world a better place than it is today. Happy Birthday America! But most importantly, happy birthday to freedom. And hopefully the freedoms you enjoy may not appreciate. Maybe something to think about that are a part of your life. I appreciate the freedom to be able to do this podcast, and I appreciate you taking your freedom when you do to listen.
And thus, we'll conclude America's birthday celebration dressed to the nines and occasion to say thank you, to say keep doing what you're doing, making a big difference in your world personally and professionally, and knowing that our world, when it's free, has a chance to be things we can't even dream of. I'll look forward to seeing the next time right back here on the next edition of Around with Randall.
Don't forget, Make Freedom and today, most importantly, a part of what you do every day.