“The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults,” the French historian and diplomat Alexis de Tocqueville observed. Published in 1835, his “Democracy in America” attempted to explain to Europeans what made America, with its emphasis on equality and individualism, so unusual.
In 2020, the question is still relevant. With the Fourth of July in mind, Climate opened pages of the July magazine for local contributors to answer: What about America is special to you? Is it the Bill of Rights? Baseball? Or Netflix? Granted, viewing the nation through red-, white- and blue-colored glasses isn’t easy in this rollercoaster year: a soaring economy, then a pandemic and then a national crisis over racial division. Nonetheless, we gave our contributors carte blanche in their choice of topics – and asked them to have at it.
We will be publishing our contributors American Stories now through the 4th of July. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.
