With All Thy Gifts – Walt Whitman

With all thy gifts, America,
Standing secure, rapidly tending, overlooking the world,
Power, wealth, extent, vouchsafed to thee — with these and like of these vouchsafed to thee.
What if one gift thou lackest? (the ultimate human problem never solving.)
The gift of perfect women fit for thee — what if that gift of gifts thou lackest?
The towering feminine of thee? the beauty, health, completion, fit for thee?
The mothers fit for thee?

When the Founding Fathers had the idea of designing a new country, a democratic country there was much they couldn’t agree on. Their bond was a democratic country so far in concept from what they had previously lived under. They fought, argued, there was an illegal duel, but they respected each other. Hate and anger were not part of the energy that formed our country. There was slavery, women were essentially owned like property, they couldn’t agree about how big of a federal government they should create and states’ rights was an issue for many.

It is 2013. There have been many generations who have lived and died. Our government was the “great experiment” and like today it was not perfect. I love America but we have many huge problems that the Founding Fathers could not foresee. Women are still second class citizens and not legally equal. Racism flows like lava covering our country with hatred and anger which is destructive. The Founding Fathers could not  be expected to see what pulls at our country. Slavery they couldn’t come to a consensus on and thought later generations would work it out. We fought the Civil War for two reasons. One was to keep the Union whole and the second was to free the slaves.

Today racism is still huge. We have Chinese, Russians, Indians, Muslims, Buddhists, Afrikan Americans, Jews, Gypsies, Cajuns, Native Americans and Christians, and countless others. We are not all equal. We need to change this. We need to accept each other as children of the Beloved. We need to finally become what the Founding Fathers envisioned:  a government where we are all equal citizens. A country where judgement and condemnation no longer exist. A country where we live what we say. May it come soon and may we stop hurting each other. May we grow up and be respectful and accepting of all Americans.