As the nation celebrates 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, we asked residents of Missouri a simple question: In a few words, what does America mean to you?
The answers we received reflected a range of perspectives, from appreciating widespread freedom, to a strong belief in fairness and justice, to suggestions on how we can, and must, improve in the next 250 years.
Here’s what your neighbors had to say:
Gennie English of St. Louis
America to me, as a veteran — it’s important to me that we have the freedom to do here in this country (what) we can’t do in a lot of other countries. We have a lot of abilities to go places and do things that most other people are not allowed to.
Warford Johnson of Ozark
America means responsibility: to show kindness, selfless generosity and caring, and providing for those less fortunate than us. It means freedom: to express ourselves through speech and voting, while adhering to the rule of law. It means struggling: to find peace and leave this land better than we found it.
Jimmie Sims of Springfield
That’s a difficult question to answer. We treat each other poorly in America, and you would think at 250 years we’d be a lot further than what we are — but if there was a message it would be to start to look inward and say, “What can I do better tomorrow than I did the day before, so that I could continue to make the nation great?”
Elizabeth Parker of Springfield
America is the melting pot where everyone is welcome and everyone is free…