Let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania! Let freedom ring from the snow capped Rockies of Colorado! Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California! But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia! Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee! Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. And when this happens, when we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old negro spiritual, "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"
Martin Luther King, excerpt from his "I Have A Dream" speech
Yesterday we took Dick and Nelle to see The Liberty Bell and Independence Mall. It was a cold day and the streets were lined with piles of snow. Not many people ventured out with us to view the history of Freedom and Democracy yesterday. I had not seen the Liberty Bell yet and felt quite excited. Our visit coincided with election day in Iraq, and I overheard some of the visitors mumbling about Iraqi people voting as we wandered around the Mall.
As we entered the Liberty Bell building we were instructed to remove our coats and bags and place them on the security table. Many security guards, police men and women were there - all over the place. I had no problem with the high levels of security. After all, I have lived in Israel for 20 years. I understand the need for protection. But within me I sighed a deep sigh for so much security in order that we might view the symbol of liberty. Ah, the complexities, paradoxes of life. I remember my first two years in America when I arrived sixteen and a half years ago from Israel. In those days, I would jump up with alarm when the siren of neighborhood fire trucks would sound, searching for the nearest bomb shelter. I remember noticing any stray parcel or bag that was lying anywhere and observing them with a slight feeling of trepidation. As the years passed I learned to let down my guard and relax. I even gave up my green card for citizenship. Gilad and I marveled at the fact that I could wander around the whole United States without any identification card except for a driver's license! In Israel everyone has an identification card - a pass that can be asked for at any time.
I thought about Iraq as we wandered through the Halls of Independence and Birthplace of the United States. I marveled at the room where the declaration of Independence was born and constitution was developed. I listened with awe as the guide described the group of men who had sat in that room for four months determined to come out with a document to announce the freedom of the United States way back in 1776.
Did you know that not everyone was allowed to vote during the first election in the United States ? Women could not. African slaves could not.
Was that a real election?
And yet it was the first election.
I watched the visitors to the Liberty Bell. Each one stood in front of it, some bent over examining the bell from every angle. I walked all the way around it. A group of Asian tourists were taking photographs, proudly standing in front of that old symbol of freedom. So many people visit this Bell each year. Yesterday some people looked to me as if they were absorbing the hope that that static piece of iron - that silenced bell - seemed to emanate.
Or was that just me feeling that?
Nelson Mandela was released. Jan and I called each other from England to Buffalo. Our joy was too huge to express. I woke up very early in the morning to watch his inauguration on television. I watched the long lines of black Africans voting in their very first election in South Africa, and I wept a thousand tears of joy and relief. I would never have dreamed of such a day.
The Iraqi people are not out of the woods. There is still so much speculation about whether they are free or democratic. Indeed, how can you be free when foreign forces occupy your land and every day you live in danger?
I am a woman. I never take my vote or right to choose for granted. When I see lines of people at polling booths my heart fills with hope. I can't help it!
(picture from here)
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