Remarks as Prepared for Presenting Picturing America

Good afternoon.

I would like to begin by thanking Jamil Zainaldin, Executive Director of the Georgia Humanities Council and Chris Womack, Executive Vice President of Georgia Power for all the hard work they put into making this event possible and for their efforts to promote Picturing America across Georgia.

Because of the work of everyone here today, 86 schools in the Atlanta Public School System have been awarded Picturing America (PA); 807 schools in the state of Georgia will also have PA.

As you know, Dr. King was born and raised here; he preached at the Ebenezer Baptist Church on Auburn Avenue; his final resting place is feet from here. It is completely appropriate that we come here to celebrate this wonderful program in the shadow Dr. King’s legacy. His is one of America’s great stories, and because of his accomplishments, America is a better place.

In this day and age, far too many children are cut off from the history of our great country. They spend far more time playing video games or watching television than learning about our forefathers. That’s not how we build a healthy culture.

I recently came across a study that found that 3 to 12 year olds who spend more time outdoors are likely to be more physically active. Thinking that seemed a little too obvious, I Googled the study to find out what I was missing. And as it turns out, there are many studies linking the two. I guess it’s a pretty safe research subject if you’re a scientist who doesn’t deal with disappointment particularly well.

Fortunately, there are people like you who work to engender in our kids a sense of excitement in what our country’s all about.

Back when I worked at the White House, they used to promote our shared American culture by bringing in prominent historians for occasional lectures.

My favorite lecturer was Victor Davis Hanson. He gave a thoughtful talk about how his study of ancient Greek warfare relates to our modern American civilization.

He explained how the Greeks created a military formation called the hoplite. A hoplite was a heavily armored spearmen who would fight shoulder to shoulder with other hoplites in powerful formations called phalanxes.

The reason these formations of hoplites were so powerful was because through the strength of each hoplite and their closeness to one another, they built a unit greater than the sum of its parts.

The hoplites enabled the Greek civilization to become one of the shining examples of ancient civilization. They also offer us a lesson on how civilizations aren’t built around things that divide us, but on things that draw us together so that we, too, can become greater than the sum of our parts. The essence of why American history is so important is because it engenders similar feelings of commonality and shared purpose.

The founders of our country understood the importance of history. They, along with most Americans, were very well versed in and appreciated the classics. For example, when Patrick Henry said “Give me liberty or give me death,” and Nathan Hale said “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country,” they were both quoting the defiance of Cato against the tyranny of Caesar in the early 18^th century play Cato, A Tragedy.

Back in the nineties, while working on my Ph.D. in American history, I thought a lot about the importance of the iconic events of America’s past. The more I thought about these events, the more aware I became of them in my everyday surroundings. I think of the fortitude of George Washington when I drive across the Delaware River. When I’m in Boston, I appreciate the resoluteness of Paul Revere. I understand a little more about the men and women who built this country when I walk past the Chrysler building in New York.

And when I look at James Karales’ Selma to Montgomery photo, or stand so close to the home where Martin Luther King, Jr. was born and raised and the church were he preached his historic sermons, I see how one man’s dream altered the course of history.

I’ve come to realize that if we want our civilization to remain great, we’re going to have to inculcate the same feelings among our children. Through Picturing America, we are.

That’s why the Picturing America initiative is so important. Picturing America helps the next generation of Americans come together to study the amazing events that formed our country, our culture, our civilization. I’d like to thank Bruce Cole and everyone with the National Endowment for the Humanities for their work on this important project.

Through Picturing America, the National Endowment for the Humanities and my Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families are working to educate children on the great people, places, and moments in our history as depicted in American art.

The Administration for Children and Families is installing these iconic images in Head Start centers around the country. In these centers, as well as the other classrooms the images are in, children will marvel at the art. They’ll wonder about our common history. They’ll ask questions about the events. They’ll learn what makes our country great.

Initially, the Picturing America Teachers’ Guide will be provided to help Head Start centers develop lesson plans. Later, Head Start will distribute Picturing America materials throughout many of its 20,000 programs.

I hope the Picturing America images will inspire these children to do great things for our country. Just looking around at the pictures on display here, I’m sure we can all draw our own inspiration from the past to go out and work toward a wonderful future for all.