Democracies in Progress

By Jodi Rudoren
Editor in Chief
The Forward

“The continued existence of this bold experiment in democracy is in doubt; smart people have started to posit publicly that the country may not make it to its 100th birthday.

It is 1851 in the United States of America…

“The 1850s are interesting because you can watch this incredible divide splitting over what it means to be an American,” historian Heather Cox Richardson said. “Literally the North and the South divide over what democracy means.”

“So what lessons does 1851 America have for 2023 Israel, a young nation hopelessly divided over the balance of power between its Knesset and its courts, the fate of the West Bank and Gaza, the rights of Palestinians inside and outside its borders, and the role that religion should play in public life?

“Four score minus five years ago, this country was established “for the benefit of all its inhabitants,” according to its Declaration of Independence, “based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel,” and ensuring “complete equality of social and political rights” regardless “of religion, race or sex.”

About Heart of a Nation

Empowering the next generation of American, Israeli, and Palestinian change-makers to embrace better, together.

אנחנו מכנסים הוגים מובילים, פעילים חברתיים, ומחוללי שינוי לעתיד, אמריקאים, ישראלים ופלסטינאים, המחויבים לשיפור החברות שלהם.

نحن أمريكيون وإسرائيليون وفلسطينيون نبني ونكوّن روابط من أجل التعلم والتفكير والمشاركة معًا حتى نشجع الحلول التقدمية بشأن القضايا التي تهمنا جميعًا.