The Sestercentennial

As 2026 progresses, celebrations, documentaries, and various other commemorations concerning the 250 year anniversary of our founding will be ubiquitous. 

Towards this tremendous milestone, the Atlantic devoted its entire November edition to the subject.

First, a note.

I want to express my gratitude to Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump for this, my first year of reading the Atlantic. You see, it was the SignalGate controversy that cemented my desire to obtain a subscription to this wonderful magazine. While I had occasionally read some articles in the year preceding that event, it was Hegseth's avoidance of responsibility for including an editor of a magazine, let alone one with a history of negative articles about the current administration, in his communication chain about an ongoing military action, as well as his assertions that this breach of secrecy did not reveal any classified information. 

And, if that wasn't bad enough, after the revelation of this incompetence, rather than being held responsible, the president instead attacked the magazine itself, calling it a failed entity and ridiculing both the person who was included in the breach, and the magazine, even though the Atlantic did not publish anything until after the strike. That they, in fact, were more responsible in withholding possible info that might have put our soldiers in harms way than the head of the Department of Defense himself. (No, I won't call it the Department of War!)

Since my subscription began in April of last year, I have not only been exposed to amazing online articles and news, but a monthly magazine filled with wonderful writing, relevant news, and insightful analysis of these dark times.

In addition, and unexpectedly, the Atlantic has introduced me, and inspired me to read a number of books by authors that either I had never heard of or whom I had never read despite knowing of their importance. From current writers like Ann Applebaum, Elaine Pagels and David Graeber to authors who have departed mortal soil such as Toni Morrison, James Baldwin and Kurt Vonnegut, the Atlantic has rekindled my love for reading, as well as discovering the perspectives of people different from myself. You know, learning about diversity, equity and inclusion, those three great traits that have contributed to the amazing history of our country.

Anyway, back to the November edition of the Atlantic which was titled The Unfinished Revolution and featured a flip out picture of 23 people, some famous, some infamous, and some unknown but just as important in our shared history.

The articles within the edition touched on topics as varied as our history itself, broken into five chapters, Defiance, Conflict, Independence, Memory and Crisis. Like the Ken Burns 12 hour documentary (I have seen the first two episodes), there is a lot of information about the years preceding the signing of the Declaration and the War for Independence, details that provide substance and background for the hows and whys that led to our eventual decision to seek separation from England.

So many details which, I am ashamed to say, were frequently unknown to me as the version of our history has been so often altered to present positive spins on dreadful situations or simply pretend they didn't happen. 

One of the many things I have learned is that the English openly and successfully recruited African Americans to fight against the colonists, offering freedom from enslavement as a reward. Sadly, our Independence resulted in many of those men, women and their families being chased down and returned to their former masters, or forced them to flee to Canada, some Caribbean Islands or even back to Africa.

Of course, for every black mark that was true of those times, for every hypocrisy that was revealed by the men who claimed that all men are created equal yet did not include women, Blacks or even the poor white people of the day, there are stories of inspiration, true belief in self governance as opposed to the divine rights of a king, and all sorts of sacrifices, cooperation and even compromises among the colonists despite their differences.

America is certainly a conundrum, if nothing else.

Which makes it all the more sad to see how some people seem obsessed with whitewashing our history, pretending that within all the good there weren't times when we have fallen very far short of the ideals of our founding documents.

Not to mention our seeming fascination, even acceptance by some to allow one man the power of a king, or autocrat. 

Anyway, if you see the November edition of the Atlantic, perhaps at your local library or at a friend's home or maybe even at a store that sells magazines, I heartily recommend you borrow or buy it.

You will be enlightened, perhaps even more proud of America since you will know more of the full story, not just the one which pretends that manifest destiny is real and that nothing bad ever happened here. That despite the flaws of our founders and the ways in which we have come up short to their ideals, we are part and parcel to a wonderful experiment in self governance, and in the attempt to assist all people in their efforts to seek life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, even when they live, love and identify their gender in unique ways.

Frankly, and despite my recent reduction in optimism, perhaps reading articles such as those included in The Unfinished Revolution and viewing Ken Burns' American Revolution documentary, the veil will be lifted from the eyes of my fellow Americans and the majority will reject the cruelty, the xenophobia, the bigotry, and the corruption of our current president, and seek to make the ideal that all men are created equal a reality.