Brodhead High School - Red B Yearbook (Brodhead, WI)

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so firmly established! Daniel Webster said, God grants liberty only to those who love it, and are always willing to guard and defend it. The Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence, or any other legal document, or a thousand freedom trains filled with historical documents and traveling from city to city can not guarantee that this way of life will be passed on to our children . . . that is our responsibility. The future of America can only be secured if we re-affirm the beliefs of our forefathers-that real security and self-reliance are inseparable. -Beverly Fairman. HOPE THROUGH EDUCATION CO-SALUTATORY e The United States, the oldest republic in the world, has the oldest public school system. We all know that public education began in co- lonial America. Education has always been highly regarded in America because of its promise to bring to reality the American dream of the ideal society and the good life for all. Now our American ideals and dreams face the threat of usurpation by an opposing ideology. We are well aware of how Communism is spread by deliberate manipulation of educational institutions. To judge the ability of our schools to withstand infiltration by a false ideology we may do well to look back in order that we may look forward the better. Henry Steele Commanger, noted Columbia University historian, lists four major gifts from our schools to the American way of life. The first of these gifts was the creation of an enlightened citizenry --an absolute necessity for successful self-government. The success of this gift can be attested to by a look at the presidents we have elected. Certainly mediocre presidents have been selected, but never a wicked or a dangerous one. Our leaders may have carried the Big Stick upon occasion but never have they lowered an iron curtain between millions of peoples and the outside world. We have faced ever recurring differ- ences and problems, but through compromise we have avoided revolu- tions and continuous political crises. The second of these gifts was the development of a national unity. The early colonists, because of diverse backgrounds, seemed to have a greater number of differences than points of agreement. Somehow they learned to work together and soon found more and more common in- terests and common goals to unite them. Since then our schools have held the key in carrying on the goal of striving for an imperishable na- tional unity to carry our country through each new crisis it must face. Third of these gifts was Americanization. Millions of immigrants have entered our country throughout the years. In our schools these people and their children have learned our language, history, customs, and ideals. Thus were they assimilated into our way of life and in a short time came to feel they, too, were Americans. ' And the fourth and greatest of these gifts our schools have given was the drive for a continual striving for the goal of equal opportunity for all. Our society, profoundly varied in racial background, in religious faiths, in social and economic backgrounds, has had to combat the forces of riotous privilege and disastrous division. These forces have been con- tinuously battled in the schoolroom where children have lived and learned in equality. Throughout the years the education of all its chil- dren has been the foremost concern of its citizens.

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Last of all, after the bomb has been completed, the scientists must experiment to see if their efforts have been in vain. Our forefathers tested their efforts through letting the people work together, and run the government. There still remained some difficulties to be ironed out, but in the main, their work had been successful. This labor of our founders is our American Heritage. The American Heritage is whatever the citizen has that is not of his own effort and his own making, the thing that he has acquired and been brought into the world to enjoy. To the American, I think this heritage shows up as prin- ciples and opportunities and obligations. For example, principles of governmental organization and group action based on respect for the integrity of the human individual: and secondly, opportunities for build- ing his own life based on the idea that the amount of effort he exerts will be the thing that will make a difference. There are barriers, but effort and ability and individual initiative will overcome these. There are ob- ligations also, based on the assumption that the individual knows that his destiny depends on his participation. He knows that is true. If he fails in his job and does not live up to his obligations, then the whole structure collapses. We, as students of today, have a far greater problem than did our founders, although it demands of us the same qualities which were possessed by them. Their nation was tiny and so far removed from the rest of civiliza- tion that it wouldn't have had much effect on the rest of the world whether they had won or lost. ' But our task and responsibilities are different. Our nation is im- mense and its government very complex. The world, instead of being vast as it once was, has grown small. The countries that were once half a year away are now close neighbors-we can reach almost any country in the world in twenty-four hours. How we live and what laws we make, influence the whole world. You have heard people say, Why do we bother about these other countries at all? Why don't we close our doors and tend to our own busi- ness? Let the rest of the world do likewise. But history has proved that every time a government has grown strong, by good deeds or foul, and remained aloof from the world, that government's victory has been its ruination. It is up to us as future citizens to study and learn what we can do to keep this government-big, strong-in this world of nations. We, as the future lawmakers of our government, should keep in mind a famous quotation: To Whom much is given, of him much also is required. We must remember that much more is required of us today than of those a hundred years ago. Our obligation is greater, because our privileges are greater. For every one of our rights there is a duty- the right of freedom of worship, and the duty to practice religious toler- anceg the right of freedom of speech and press, the duty to speak the truth and to respect the opinions of others, the right of freedom of as- sembly and petition, the duty to refrain from mob action. These are only a few examples. I could mention many, many more, and so could you. The goal of our founders, then, was to create strong individuals, mentally, morally, spiritually, and physically, to allow them to work together as a small group, and gradually grow into a concrete, united nation with the essential principles of government laid down before them. Yes, that was the goal of our founders and they reached it. Why don't we then set our goal-to uphold the standards and principles they X

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We have by and large achieved the American goal of equal and enlightened education for all Americans. But now it seems our way of life will be faced with extinction unless we can share the same oppor- tunity with all peoples of the world. To do this we must make certain that our education is always based on truth and always superior to any offered under any other system of government. Let us now consider in what ways our own educational institutions are meeting this challenge. There are at least three present trends to make the school of more benefit to the citizens of tomorrow. The first is a tendency toward a more diversified curriculum in high school to serve the student who will go no farther in his education. The second is development of community schools more readily adjustable to the needs of the student. The third is the turning of the schools to the out-of-doors to help city children dis- cover the secrets and rewards of woodland and meadow. Always there is talk of the mistakes of the schools and We admit our educational institutions may not yet be perfect. Thank goodness We live in a country where we are free to criticize and complain-for only thus can we mend errors and weaknesses! In the present age the critics must remember the schools share the responsibility of child education with the movies, radio, television, news- papers, magazines, and sad to say, the comic book. To those quick to criticize the school, We say remember that schools reflect the society they serve. To reform our schools we must first reform ourselves. We must meet the challenge of the times for to fail in the schools will also surely mean to fail our democratic way of life. If society clearly defines the new duties it wishes the schools to take on, and if it steadfastly supports them not only with money but also with faith, our schools will surely justify that faith in the future as they have in the past. -Marty Peterson. PEACE WITH FREEDOM CO-SALUTATORY The one and only possible formula for peace was discovered by the Founding Fathers when they indited and implemented the American Declaration of Independence. Down through the years this document has been a thrilling message of hope for mankind. As we read this for- mula for peace we are inspired to rededicate our lives to the perpetua- tion of freedom for all mankind. The men who wrote our Declaration of Independence were think- ing of the individuals who were seeking liberty, happiness and peace in America. They had learned from experience that the God-given liberty of the individual citizen soon disappears if governments and men are unrestricted. The result of this experience was that the Declaration of Independence charged the new government with the duty of protecting the personal rights and inforcing the personal duties of men. In these days of great trial and world crises one often hears pleas for world peace. Everyone wants an end to the wars, suffering, and strife that plague the world. We all want an end to cold wars and in- ternational quarrels. We are tired of bickering between countries and we want friendly and peaceful relationships between nations instead of jealousy. We all want these improved conditions, but we differ in our X