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Positively Speaking: The fight for freedom

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By Toby Moore

For Capital Region Independent Media

Headshot of man named Toby Moore
Toby Moore

We recently wrapped up another election season and opened the latest chapter in our nation’s history. The act of voting, an honor hard-won and cherished, reflects our journey from a small group of colonies to a mighty republic, constantly tested and reshaped by the hands of its people.

It all began in 1775 with a small group of determined colonists who risked everything for self-governance. Visionaries like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin knew that independence from Britain was only the start. They would go on to craft a nation based on untested ideals of liberty, rallying under the Declaration of Independence—a declaration of rights for all who would call themselves American, even if America’s early reality fell far short of this lofty vision.

We faced immediate and daunting challenges. As westward expansion continued, conflicts erupted between settlers and Indigenous tribes.

Tragically, Native American nations were forced from their lands, often with devastating consequences that continue today, reminding us of promises not kept and wrongs that still echo through our history.

Even as America grew, another dark shadow loomed: the institution of slavery. By the 1800s, slavery was entrenched in American life, particularly in the South, where millions of people lived in bondage. Abolitionists like Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Tubman risked their lives to challenge this brutal institution. Their courage would be a rallying cry for the Civil War, a four-year battle that tore the nation apart. Yet, under the leadership of Abraham Lincoln, the Union’s victory brought freedom to enslaved people and solidified the principle that “all men are created equal.”

The fight for freedom did not end there. The women’s suffrage movement took hold in the late 19th century, as Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and countless others pushed for equal rights. Decades of relentless advocacy finally succeeded with the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920, granting women the right to vote and affirming that America’s promise of freedom extended to all citizens.

Just when we seemed to be on a path of unity, the world was thrown into chaos: World War I and later World War II. Veterans of those wars, like Dwight D. Eisenhower and George S. Patton, returned as heroes, their courage reinforcing America’s role as a beacon of freedom, yet even as our soldiers fought for liberty abroad, Americans at home wrestled with deep issues of justice and equality.

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s marked a new era of change, challenging systems of segregation and discrimination. Leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and John Lewis reminded the nation that “freedom for all” meant just that—for every race, creed and color.

They pushed America toward the promises written into its founding documents through marches, sit-ins, and speeches, which led to legislative milestones like the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, which continue to protect and empower citizens today.

Since then, we’ve faced significant challenges and times of turmoil—from foreign wars to September 11th and beyond.

Through it all, our strength has been found not in perfection but in a continued willingness to change and strive for a better future.

And here we are again, after a divisive election, with candidates on all sides calling for different paths forward.

We must remember that we are united by a shared love for our country and by the knowledge that, regardless of who sits in the Oval Office, the power rests with the people. We must uphold the ideals that have defined America: liberty, justice, and freedom for all.

So, whether your candidate won or lost, whether this election played out precisely as you’d hoped or not, we all have a role to play in moving forward. Our nation’s history is built on debate, disagreement, and, ultimately, unity in the pursuit of freedom. That pursuit makes us the “shining city on a hill”—a place of hope, progress and promise. Our light must never be extinguished.

Together, we can keep America strong, free, and fair—a place where all voices are heard and everyone, regardless of race, religion or background, can pursue their dreams.

May our love of country keep us united, now and always.

Toby Moore is a columnist, the star of Emmy-nominated “A Separate Peace,” and the CEO of Cubestream Inc.

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