On the banks of the Mississippi River last week, I stood a stone's throw from the Old Courthouse where Dred and Harriet Scott entered in 1847 to petition for their freedom. The enslaved Africans and their white allies resolutely pursued the case all the way to the US Supreme Court, ultimately precipitating the Civil War. In that building events took place that resulted in the emancipation of approximately four million people from the scourge of human bondage in America.
Within the walls of this courthouse the energy of Dred and Harriet Scott and supporters in the fight for human dignity can yet be felt.
Looking to my right, the giant metal Gateway Arch symbolizing America's Western Expansion loomed, also a stone's throw away. The architectural miracle - comparable to France's Eiffel Tower - and the Old Courthouse constitute Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, a unit of the National Park System named in honor of President Thomas Jefferson, signer of the Declaration of Independence; authorizer of the Louisiana Purchase which instantly doubled the American landmass, and a man who simultaneously held people as slaves.
The juxtaposition of these two pillars of American evolution shook me to my core. Revitalization efforts currently underway make it possible for you to walk from the Old Courthouse to the Arch "without stepping off the curb." I cannot think of another park in the system where I felt so close to history, or where I was overcome with feelings of such poignancy.
I tried to embrace the Gateway Arch in my arms and heal the conflicts from Western Expansion still being played out at Standing Rock.
Standing in an office building high above the city with both structures in view, the history learned in 179 units of our National Park System flashed before my eyes. I hurtled through the Arch back to the Revolutionary War; the Lewis & Clark Expedition; the oppression and dispossession of Natives; the establishment of Sequoia, Yosemite, and the spectacular natural parks I've visited west of the Mississippi.
This sculpture of Dred and Harriet Scott is a fitting tribute to our freedom seeking ancestors.
Coming back to the Old Courthouse I watched Dred and Harriet Scott enter the building with all the fear and hope and dread in their hearts. I saw and felt the courage that kept them continually striving to claim their freedom through verdicts that went repeatedly against them. I watched our white American brothers and sisters who "owned" them help fight for their liberation as human beings. In that very courthouse they finally tasted freedom.
Then with a start, I realized that we are on the verge of entering a new arc, one that turns away from our country's foundational values of "liberty and justice for all." For the first time, our incoming leadership is turning the value of unity on its head. Instead, it strives deliberately to foment division in the populace; proposes to run our country as a corporation, (a country is responsible for the well-being of its citizenry; a corporation looks to maximize profits for investors) and tells us there's no such thing as fact. The President-elect's business acumen can be gleaned from this article detailing his debts.
From my perch at Jefferson National Expansion Memorial I thought, "Aha! You charlatans! You cannot UN-Make the fact of the Old Courthouse, which is a physical testament to the American struggle against our basest instincts. You cannot Un-Make the Mississippi River and the St. Louis sites from which the Western Migration began. These are facts, among so many other irrefutable touchstones in our National Park System."
I saw that our national parks are the antidote to the epidemic of mistrust that is being deliberately foisted upon us, appropriately termed "Gaslighting."
Our close friend Dr. Carolyn Finney and many other luminaries including Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and current Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell serving on the Second Century Commission on National Parks, spent years studying the future of these treasures and concluded:
"National parks are among our most admired public institutions. We envision the second century National Park Service supporting vital public purposes, the national parks used by the American people as venues for learning and civic dialogue, as well as for recreation and refreshment. We see the national park system managed with explicit goals to preserve and interpret our nation's sweep of history and culture, sustain biological diversity, and protect ecological integrity . . ."
In her 2017 Year of Adventure I hope Oprah visits all 413 units of our National Park System and brings them to her adoring public.
I'm greatly encouraged by the current issue of O Magazine, which features Oprah Winfrey's loving tribute to Nature at the Grand Canyon National Park. When this lifestyle icon extols the virtues of our national parks, it'll trigger millions of others to learn about and explore them. Oprah also encourages readers to support Native Americans' petition to President Obama asking him to designate Bears Ears as a National Monument. Our Next100 Coalition has been supporting the push for the ancient lands containing cliff dwellings and prehistoric villages to be protected from oil and gas drilling and damaging recreation.
Let's see more inspiring stories such as that of Ranger Mashawn Butler, at the Roosevelt Arch marking the entrance to Yellowstone National Park where she works.
What arc will America take next? What arch or portal will we go through? The answer to what we should do - move forward together - is a tactile, sensory experience in our national parks. Proximity to The Gateway Arch and the Old (Dred Scott) Courthouse privileged me to see the long view.
I pray you, please identify and visit a unit of the National Park System near you over the holiday season. Learn something real and factual about our country. We'll need it to help make sure that our great experiment in Democracy remains for our descendants to enjoy.