AMERICA: THE SHORT VERSION
“SHE’LL LOVE YOU IF YOU LET HER AGAIN”
AMERICA: THE SHORT VERSION
“SHE’LL LOVE YOU
IF YOU LET HER AGAIN”
“I really do want to move forward with updating AMERICA, starting with post-9/11, up. Let’s plot out our changes and get on it. Are you free tomorrow?”
“Let me check my calendar,” I dryly thought to myself. I mean, how many of these hours-long Skype video calls with David Soul can one girl take in a lifetime, am I right?
Yeah. Even after 14 years of a very close friendship, the man still gave me goosebumps—and he knew it.
So on to the revision for AMERICA we all went. In fact, two of us traveled from the United States, and one of us (with her husband) traveled from Australia, to be with David and his wife Helen for a two-week stay at a beautiful farm in the remote English countryside. There we all plotted and planned our vision for a new (revised) AMERICA, this one much shorter, more ‘generic,’ focusing it on who we were as a nation, but also on who we still are—while we still can be.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE ORIGINAL VERSION
Below the video (scroll down) are but a few of David’s notes and thoughts regarding AMERICA (the film), AMERICA REVISED (the video), and America (the country). This shortened version of our film is part one of a two-part project. Our only teaser for AMERICA Part Two is this: it isn’t a video—and it’s much more meaningful than what we’ve done here. So, please stay tuned. The AMERICA project is but one in a series of David’s in-progress projects that we are dedicated to finishing in his name.
It’s a privilege to be able to do so.
—Laura, with Lisa and Alison
Team Soul
Actor/director and musician David Soul, co-star of the iconic 1970s television series, Starsky and Hutch, created and directed a 28-minute documentary called AMERICA, based on a song of the same name.
The song, written by Jack Murphy and recorded by David 45 years ago, wasn’t released until 2020—as David’s contribution to the presidential election. Since then, David worked on revising the film into something much shorter and a lot more generic, and planned to release it today, July 4, well in time for the 2024 election. In his name, we herewith finish the video and bring his vision to life.
We are reminded by David’s AMERICA that we must unite together in our continuing journey to form “a more perfect union”; in essence, to ensure that the promises of equality and justice for all Americans, enshrined within the United States Constitution, are fully realized.
DAVID’S MUSINGS ON AMERICA
* * *
On our Team America rendezvous at a farm in the English countryside: “Really looking forward to our time together. Lots to talk about and strategize. But first, and before we get into anything of the future, let’s go back to AMERICA (our contribution to a kinder America and perhaps even beyond).”
* * *
“Lisa, I was really touched by the response from the person in Australia who sort of stumbled onto the site and found a 28-minute video called AMERICA and then gave it such a meaningful review. So much so that I had to go back and look at the film one more time, months after having seen it the last time. I was in tears … not because it’s such a great film, but because it strikes such a chord of truth within—whether American or Australian. We need to see more of this kind of thing that goes beyond the political polemics that keep us from realizing that we and our children have a future. What kind of future are we going to encourage?”
* * *
“Lots to think about if we want to bring our film up-to-date. In the scenario above, the song, which starts out with such post-WWII hope and an eagle that takes us through events, both good and bad, finally lands on the shoulder of MLK (“I Have a Dream”), and cannot go further. The eagle, along with the song, crumbles into oblivion and darkness … a harsh reminder that, if we don’t take care of each other, if we don’t stick together, this precious gift that we’ve been born into will be taken away. There are consequences for taking the freedoms and responsibilities of citizens away, of destroying good will, and caring about ’the other.’”
* * *
On MAGA: “What we want to show is the substance behind what they represent and their view of what America is about, what they have to say in this divided country, and how much people can embrace the history, the legacy, the possibility of Democracy vs. the ME-ism of the other side, is what it’s about. On what basis do the fascists—the Trumpists—base their racism that can so quickly turn to justifiable (in their terms) violence? And, on-the-other-hand, how do we hold onto and demand that the values we have established for our country—and of which Obama speaks with such reverence and urgency—be upheld?”
* * *
On fascism in America: “We have to go online against this behavior. It’s happening all over the U.S: banning books, real history, fear of facing ourselves and our past. Reminds me of President Franklin Roosevelt: ‘The only thing we have to fear is fear itself!’ By denying the truth, we leave lies to our children … and our future.”
* * *
“God, how I wish we had more of these representatives, this kind of lawmaker, working for us in Congress.”
Watch here: Eric Swalwell gives the single BEST speech shredding Republicans you’ll ever hear
* * *
Reflections after the 2020 election: “We have begun the journey of the restoration of the SOUL of America. I am so relieved. I think the real issue here is that Democracy has survived with the election. And we have to say it’s more important that we lift the process and believe in the law and the evidence and not get crazy about what [Trump] will do. He has only one interest—himself. But AMERICA is bigger than that. Please, let’s not buy into the bullshit of what a self-centered, sociopathic narcissist will do. We will rise above that.”
* * *
On Abraham Lincoln’s ‘A Fragment on Slavery’ [see below]: “Quite extraordinary. Makes absolute sense, absolute logic, but don’t count on any members of the so-called ‘party of Lincoln (GOP)’ to buy into that explanation. These political descendants of Lincoln put power ahead of common sense. I love the handwritten version. HE [Lincoln] wrote it … must have thought about it for a while.”
If A can prove, however conclusively, that he may, of right, enslave B—why may not B snatch the same argument, and prove equally, that he may enslave A?
You say A is white and B is black. It is color, then; the lighter, having the right to enslave the darker? Take care. By this rule, you are to be a slave to the first man you meet with a fairer skin than your own.
You do not mean color exactly? You mean whites are intellectually the superiors to blacks, and therefore have the right to enslave them? Take care again. By this rule, you are to be slave to the first man you meet with an intellect superior to your own.
But say you, it is a question of interest; and, if you can make it your interest, you have the right to enslave another. Very well. And if he can make it his interest, he has the right to enslave you.
* * *
“One afterthought: Emmett Till’s death and Martin Luther King’s [‘I Have a Dream’] speech both came on my birthday, August 28.”
* * *
On a casual moment picked up on police body cam during the George Floyd Murder: “One haunting, seemingly innocent image that keeps coming back to me from the George Floyd segment in our film, is this:
“A man, on his stomach, handcuffed and restrained by three police officers, is dying … he can’t breathe. He cries for his mother. One of the police officers, with his knee pressed on the neck of the dying man, casually, callously ignores the pleas of both the dying man who can’t move or breathe, as well as the cries of the public witnessing his death, and what does the police officer do? While continuing to apply pressure, ignoring the pleas of both the restrained man and the public, and to further show us his intent, his arrogance, and how time is of no concern to him, he spots a pebble in the tread of the tire in front of him, and picks it out as if to say, ‘This disturbing pebble is of greater significance than squeezing the life out of this man trapped under my knee.’
“Think about it.
“Also, check out the Emmett Till anti-lynching bill introduced in 2019 and still not passed because of Rand Paul.”
* * *
“Who are these uniformed gestapo Mo-Fuckers who think they can make laws on the spot with no regard for the law? Sworn to uphold the law and to ‘serve and protect’? It’s an excuse for violating people and their rights. Makes my blood boil.”
* * *
On a meme of Donald Trump nailed to a cross with Nancy Pelosi spearing him and Melania bathing his feet: “I don’t care if you’re a believer or an atheist … this is an abomination. This is BOTTOM-OF-THE-BARREL apostasy … religious or political. Who are these assholes?”
* * *
On the bald eagle he drew for our wrap-up: “OK … so here’s your damn EAGLE [drawing] … and if anyone asks, tell ’em a 3rd grader did it.”
* * *
About the 2020 Election: “It’s not about the candidate primarily … it’s about the constitutionally guaranteed right of every citizen to VOTE. We’ve already seen that fight in our earlier scenes … and it’s still going on. This point is not about Joe Biden or the ‘we should vote for him.’ It’s about the RIGHT TO VOTE for everyone qualified to vote, especially important as we move into this one drawn-out period of electioneering in our country.”
* * *
On the election results, November 7, 2020: “WooHoo!!!!!!! Joe’s done it!”
TEAM AMERICA
BEHIND THE FILM
DAVID SOUL
Director / Editor
LAURA MORETTI
Editor & Film Production
LISA ADAIR
Production Content Coordinator
ALISON KNOX
Legal Consultant
IMAGES AND FOOTAGE
Adobe Stock
Associated Press
Audio Jungle
Audio Network
Envato Elements
Getty Images
Shutterstock
COURTESY IMAGES AND FOOTAGE
Black Past
Department of Defense
Flickr
Greenwood Cultural Center
Kent State University Libraries, May 4 Collection, Kent State University New Services May 4 photographs; Kent State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives
Library of Congress
Michael Moretti
NASA
NASA Langley Research Center
National Archives
National Park Service
Newspapers.com
Oklahoma Historical Society
News Service, May 4 photographs. Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives
Oklahoma Historical Society
The White House
Unsplash
Wikimedia
Wikipedia
Wiki Commons
Bigfoot’s band on Pine Ridge Reservation, SD, 1891: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
March of the Sioux, Great Plains, 1905: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Purchase of Manhattan Island, 1909: Wiki Commons
Scene on board slave ship, circa 1830: Archivist/Adobe Stock
President Thomas Jefferson: Rembrandt Peale/Wikipedia
Slave auction; slaves treated as objects: Mannaggia/Adobe Stock
Slaves in cotton field: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
‘His name is Gordon’: Matthew Brady/Wiki Commons
Frederick Douglass: George K Warren/Wiki Commons
President Abraham Lincoln: Alexander Gardner/Wiki Commons
WWII airplanes: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Normandy Invasion, France, June 1944: U.S. Coast Guard/National Archives
Dead soldier on Omaha Beach, France, 1944: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Eisenhower talking to U.S. troops: Unknown U.S. Army Photographer/Wikipedia
WW II soldiers playing piano in Normandy, France: National Archives U.S.A.
USAFF 64th Fighter Squadron, 1943: Nick Parrino/Wiki Commons
Tuskegee Airmen, circa May 1942: U.S. Air Force/Wiki Commons
Soda jerk flipping ice cream: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Wounded soldier on crutches in street with American flag: Associated Press
‘Kennedy Murdered’ newspaper headline: Ft. Worth Star Telegram
President Lyndon Johnson sworn in on plane: Cecil W. Stoughton/Wiki Commons
U.S. soldiers and helicopters during the Vietnam War: Horst Faas/Associated Press
U.S. Marines running from helicopter on fire during the Vietnam War: Horst Faas/Associated Press
Anti-Vietnam War protestors: Bill Ingraham/Associated Press
Vietnamese women and children hide in river at Bao Trail during the Vietnam War: Horst Faas/Associated Press
Vietnam War U.S. wounded: Associated Press
Soldier standing over fallen dead in field during the Vietnam War: Dang Van Phuoc/Associated Press
Soldier standing at Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC: Sgt. Ken Scar/Department of Defense
Line of cars to Woodstock jam highway, 1969: Associated Press
Crowd shot of Woodstock, 1969: James M. Shelley/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
Altamont concert fans, 1969: Associated Press
Jimi Hendrix at Monterey Pop Festival, 1967: Bruce Fleming/Associated Press
Kent State, 1970; National Guards face-off with protesters: May 4 Collection, Kent State University New Services May 4 photographs; Kent State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives
Students hiding behind cars, Kent State, 1970: News Service May 4 photographs. Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives.
Newspaper headline from Kent State University, 1970: Newspapers.com
Girls giving peace sign to troops: Associated Press
Anti-Vietnam War protesters march down Fifth Ave., New York City, NY, 1968: Associated Press
The Watts Rebellion, 1965: New York World-Telegram/Library of Congress
Man being forced into police car, The Watts Rebellion, 1965: New York World-Telegram/Wiki Commons
Man with upside down flag outside The White House, Washington, DC: Associated Press
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and crowd at March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: U.S. Marine Corp/Wiki Commons
Shot of crowd at March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: Shutterstock
Katherine Johnson’s equation for Flight-Path Angle of a Reentry Vehicle in the Upper Atmosphere: NASA
Katherine Johnson: NASA/Langley Research Center
Apollo 11 astronauts, 1969: NASA
Apollo 11 rocket takes off, 1969: NASA
Mission Control for Apollo 11, 1969: NASA
Apollo 11 rocket lift-off, 1969: NASA
NASA staff watch Apollo 11 launch, 1969: NASA
Apollo 11 rocket, 1969: NASA
Buzz Aldrin on the Moon, July 20, 1969: NASA
President Barack Obama gives Medal of Freedom to Katherine Johnson, November 24, 2015: NASA
NATIVE AMERICANS
Lewis & Clark at Three Forks, MT: Edgar Samuel Paxson/Wiki Commons
Pretty Group at Indian Tent: John C.H. Grabill Collection/LOC/Wiki Commons
Native Americans in headdress standing in group with Native American Woman, pointing: Adobe Stock
Birds-eye view of canyon at Wounded Knee Massacre, SD; dead horses and Indians: Northwestern Photo Co/Wiki Commons
Chief Joseph and family: Washington State History Museum/Wiki Commons
Dewey Beard, aka Iron Hail: Wikimedia
Eight Crow prisoners under guard at Crow Agency, MT, 1887: U.S. Department of Defense/National Archives at College Park Collections/Wiki Commons
Survivors of Wounded Knee Massacre: John C.H. Grabill Collection/Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Lewis and Clark on the Lower Columbia, 1905: Charles Marion Russell/Wiki Commons
Native Americans from Southeastern Idaho: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
Blackfeet painting history: Bain News Service/Library of Congress
Sauk Indian family: F.A. Rinehart/Library of Congress
Joseph Dead Feast Lodge: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
The Great Hostile Camp; birds-eye view of Lakota Sioux camp: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Arizona’s Salt River Project, digging canals: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Ta-ayz-slath, wife of Geronimo, and one child: Denver Library/Wikipedia
U.S. Army-Calvary Pursuing Indians: The United States Army-Navy/Wiki Commons
NATIVE AMERICAN PORTRAITS
Goyaale: The U.S. National Archives/Wikipedia
Black Elk and Black Elk of the Oglala Lakota as grass dancers: National Anthropological Archives/Wiki Commons
Captain Jack: Wikipedia/Wiki Commons
Chief Joseph: National Portrait Gallery/Wikipedia
Chief Seattle: Wiki Commons
Crazy Horse: Wikipedia/Wiki Commons
Geronimo: Wikipedia
Rain-in-the-Face: Orlando Scott Goff/Wiki Commons
Red Cloud and other Sioux: Brady-Handy Photograph Collection (LOC)/Wiki Commons
Heebe-tee-tse of the Shoshone Nation: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Sitting Bull by D.F. Barry: D.F. Barry/Wikimedia
White Buffalo: Frank A. Rinehart/Wikki Commons
FOUNDING OF AMERICA & PILGRIMS
Protecting The Settlers: John Ross Browne/Wikipedia
Jamestown Massacre, 1622: Matthaeus Merian/Wikipedia
Discovery of the Mississippi: William Henry Powell/Wiki Commons
Pilgrim Fathers leaving England: Tony Baggert/Adobe Stock
Pilgrim Fathers arrive in America: Archivist/Adobe Stock
Captain John Smith trying to get more food for the settlers: Colonial Jamestown Historical Park/ National Park Service,
Landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, MA: Library of Congress
Pilgrims Going to Church: George Henry Broughton/Wiki Commons
The Departure of the Pilgrim Fathers from Delfshaven on their Way to America: Adam Willaerts/Wiki Commons
Embarkation of the Pilgrims: Robert Walter Weir/Wiki Commons
Thanksgiving at Plymouth: Jennie Augusta Brownscombe/Wiki Commons
The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth, Fall 1621: Jennie Augusta Brownscombe/Wiki Commons
The First Thanksgiving, Fall 1621: Jean Leon Gerome Ferris/Wiki Commons
Penn’s Treaty with the Indians: Benjamin West/Wiki Commons
AMERICAN REVOLUTION
Close-up of the United States Constitution: klikk/Adobe Stock
Battle of Springfield, NJ: John Ward Dunsmore/Wiki Commons
Boston Tea Party, Boston, MA, December 16, 1773: Library of Congress/Wikipedia
Battle of Cowpens, SC, October 18, 1781: William Ranney/Wiki Commons
Evacuation Day and Washington’s Triumphal Entry in New York: E.P. & L. Restein/Wikipedia
First Recognition of the American Flag by a Foreign Government: Edward Moran/Wiki Commons
Foundation of the American Government: Henry Hintermeister/Wiki Commons
Benjamin Franklin’s Return to Philadelphia, PA, 1785: Jean Leon Gerome Ferris/Wiki Commons
Louis-Joseph de Montcalm trying to stop the massacre: Alfred Bobbett/Wiki Commons
Nancy Morgan Hart: Central Intelligence Agency/Wiki Commons
George Washington Crossing the Delaware: Emanuel Leutze/Wikipedia
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS
American Presidents: All Photos of the American Presidents are courtesy of The White House
SLAVERY
John Brown: Augustus Washington/Wiki Commons
Black woman with iron mask of slavery: Thales/Adobe Stock
Booker T. Washington: Frances Benjamine Johnston/Wikipedia
Cotton pickers and overseer around 1850: Wiki Commons
Frederick Douglass: Liljenquist Family Collection/Library of Congress
Harriet Tubman: Harvey B. Lindsley/Library of Congress
Picking cotton at Angola State Farm, near New Orleans, LA: Andres David Lytle Sr./Wiki Commons
Enslaved housekeeper Selina Gray and two of her daughters: National Park Service
African American slave family in front of wooden house, VA: G.H. Houghton/Library of Congress
Five generations on Smith’s Plantation, Beaufort, SC: Timothy H. O’Sullivan/Library of Congress
Escaped slaves at Foller’s house, Cumberland Landing, VA, 1862: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
AMERICAN CIVIL WAR
President Abraham Lincoln, Det. Allan Pinkerton, and Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand at Battle of Antietam, 1862: Alexander Gardner/Library of Congress
Surgeons of 3rd Division before a hospital tent, Petersburg, VA: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Tent life of the 31st Penn. Inf. at Queen’s Farm, Washington, DC: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Det. Allan Pinkerton on horseback, Battle of Antietam, 1862: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Gen. John Calwell and staff in front of tent, American Civil War: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, 1964: National Park Service
President Abraham Lincoln on the battlefield of Antietam, 1862: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
President Abraham Lincoln and Gen. George McClellan in tent, Antietam, 1862: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Capt. George Armstrong Custer with confederate prisoner (and former classmate): Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Bealeton, VA, Officer’s mess, NY volunteers: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
The staff of Gen. Fitz-John Porter in front of tent with Capt. George Armstrong Custer and a dog: Liljenquist Family Collection/Library of Congress
Abraham Lincoln Assassin John Wilkes Booth: Alexander Gardner/Library of Congress/Wikipedia
Maryland, Antietam, President Abraham Lincoln on the Battlefield: War Department/U.S. National Archives/Wikipedia
Gen. William Sherman leaning on breach of gun, Atlanta, GA: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
American Civil War dead in front of Dunker Church, Antietam, MD: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Frances L. Clatin, a woman who disguised herself as a man to fight in the American Civil War: Samuel Masury/Library of Congress
Union soldiers, dead on the battlefield of Gettysburg, PA: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS
American Presidents: All Photos of the American Presidents are courtesy of The White House
IMMIGRANTS
Immigrants arriving at a dock in early 20th century: Szalai/Adobe Stock
Arriving at Ellis Island, NY, 1920: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Four immigrants and their belongings looking out over the water: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Deaf children, St. Rita’s School, Cincinnati, signing Star Spangled Banner: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Colossal hand and torch, Statue of Liberty: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Immigrant mother and daughter, Ellis Island, NY, 1902: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Immigrants at Ellis Island, NY, 1902: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Italian men await admission processing at Ellis Island, NY: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Newly arrived European immigrants at Ellis Island, NY, 1921: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Crowd of European immigrants and their luggage arriving in NY Harbor, 1913: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Mulberry St., NY City’s Little Italy, NY, 1900: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Awaiting examination on Ellis Island, NY: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
INNOVATION & PROGRESS (Slide One)
Paparazzi: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
Interior of an antique dentist office: dbvirago/Adobe Stock
Antique 1885 brick masons from Iowa: Donna/Adobe Stock
Antique blacksmith and carpenter, 1885: Donna/Adobe Stock
1890s Victorian grocery store with stocked shelves: Donna/Adobe Stock
First U.S. rocket launched at Cape Canaveral, FL, 1950: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Thomas Edison and George Eastman with motion picture camera, 1925: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Headquarters staff, American Red Cross Disaster Relief, Tulsa, OK, 1921, after race riots: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
African American postal employees sorting mail: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
African American men shoveling snow, Washington, DC: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Baseball player, Herman “Germany” Schaefer, trying out a camera in New York, 1911: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Street vendor selling ices in NYC, NY, 1938: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Ford Lincoln coupe parked in front of Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC, 1925: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
INNOVATION & PROGRESS (Slide Two)
1910 Model T Ford: Harry Shipler/Wikipedia
Orville and Wilbur Wright and the first flight, December 17, 1903, Kitty Hawk, NC: John T. Daniels/Wiki Commons
J.D. Semler and family near Woods Park, NE, 1886: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Factory workers: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
Assembly line: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
A classroom full of children, Boston, MA, 1892: Alden Photo Co./Unsplash (https://unsplash.com/license)
North American miners, circa 1900: Archivist/Adobe Stock
Thomas Edison’s first movie machine, the Kinetoscope, 1886: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Workers on Ford assembly line in Michigan, 1913: Wiki Commons
Trolley cars on Canal Street, New Orleans, LA, 1901: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Alice C. Evans working in her lab in Washington, DC: Prints & Photographs Online Category/Library of Congress
Two grandmothers keeping up production schedule during World War II, FL, 1942: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
African American inventors Charles Baker and another man standing behind radiator system, 1906: Martin W. Bode/Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Alexander Bell’s first telephone: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
B-24 Liberator bombers assembly line, Ft. Worth, TX, 1942: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Man fueling car in Washington, DC, 1920s: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Scientist conducting lab experiment in cancer research facility, 1951: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Thomas A Edison in West Orange NJ lab, 1901: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Woman war worker checks 1,000 bomb cases, Omaha, NE, 1943: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Mail wagon in Washington, DC, 1916: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
INNOVATION & PROGRESS (Slide Three)
Logging railway, 1904: Archivist/Adobe Stock
American women shipbuilders during World War I: Brian/Adobe Stock
Peter Cooper’s Tom Thumb train, circa 1829: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Pecan shellers cracking nuts, San Antonio, TX, 1939: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Horse-drawn potato digger on a farm near Caribou, ME, 1940: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Pedestrians waiting at railroad crossing for train, CA: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Iron worker at Empire State Building construction site, New York City, NY, 1930: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Lincoln Memorial construction site, Washington, DC, 1920: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Women sewing American flags, Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York City, NY, 1916-20: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
New York City firemen on their high-pressure fire engine, New York City, NY, 1908-1916: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
CELEBRITIES & ICONS
B.B. King: Heinrich Klaffs/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en)
Jimmy Stewart studio publicity still: Studio Publicity Still/Wikipedia
The Little Rascals cast: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
Thomas Edison: Louis Bachrach/Wikipedia
Ernest Hemingway: Lloyd Arnold/Wikipedia
Elvis Presley: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Wiki Commons
Mark Twain: A.F. Bradley/Wiki Commons
Amelia Earhart: Underwood & Underwood/Wiki Commons
Walt Whitman: George C Cox/Wiki Commons
Jackie Robinson: Bob Sandberg/Wiki Commons
Bob Dylan: F. Antolin Hernandez/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)
Albert Einstein: Ferdinand Schmutzer/Wiki Commons
Sidney Poitier: Wiki Commons
Lucille Ball: CBS Television/Wiki Commons
1921 TULSA RACE MASSACRE, TULSA, OK, 1921
Parade down Greenwood Ave., Tulsa, OK, 1920s: Black Past
Maggie Walker and Staff of the Independent Order and St. Luck Penny Savings Bank: Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site/MAWA 7231/National Park Service
Scene of destruction during the riot: Greenwood Cultural Center
Mr. Mann’s store and employees: Greenwood Cultural Center
Newspaper headline that sparks riot: Wikimedia
Mob on foot and in cars outside courthouse: Greenwood Cultural Center
Mt. Zion Baptist Church burning: Greenwood Cultural Center
Race massacre victim in streets: Greenwood Cultural Center
Fire behind buildings, street view: Oklahoma Historical Society
Image of destruction of Greenwood: Greenwood Cultural Center
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT (Slide One)
At the bus station in Durham, NC, 1940: Jack Delano/Wikipedia
Masked KKK member holds noose outside car window: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
John Lewis confronted by police at Selma to Montgomery March, Selma, AL, 1965: Spider Martin/National Archives
A lynching in Duluth, MN, 1920: Wikipedia
Mamie Till looks over the body of her son, Emmett Till, at the morgue, 1955: David Jackson/Wiki Commons
KKK at demonstration in Tampa, FL, 1939: Associated Press/Wiki Commons
KKK in Muncie, IN, 1922: William Arthur Swift/Wiki Commons
Bedford-Stuyvesant riot of 1964, New York City, NY: Stanley Wolfson/Wiki Commons
Rex Theatre for Colored People: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Students protest desegregation in Clinton, OH: Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
Protest of integration of Central High School, Little Rock, AR, 1959: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
African American man drinking from ‘colored’ water fountain, OK, 1939: Russell Lee/Wiki Commons
“No beer sold to Indians”: Marion Post Wolcott/Wiki Commons
Pueblo Indians at U.S. Capitol, Washington, DC, January 15, 1923: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
National Women’s Party demonstration in front of White House, Washington, DC, 1918: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Tallahassee Civil Rights March, FL, 1971: Wiki Commons
‘Colored’ drinking fountain at Halifax County Courthouse, NC, 1938: John Vachon/Wiki Commons
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT (Slide Two)
John Lewis, U.S. House of Representatives, 1964: Marion S Trikosko/Wiki Commons
Rosa Parks mugshot: GPA Photo Archive/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/)
African American teenager attacked by police dog, 1963: Credit Bill Hudson/Associated Press
Cesar Chavez on march to Sacramento with United Farm Workers,1975: John Malmin/Wiki Commons
Civil Rights protesters at Woolworth’s sit-in, Durham, NC, 1960: State Archives of North Carolina/Wiki Commons
Civil Rights march halted at Edmund Pettus Bridge, 1965: Jack Rabin Collection on Alabama Civil Rights and Southern Activists, Pennsylvania State University/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/)
Freedom Riders bus firebombed by KKK, Anniston, AL, 1961: U.S. National Park Service/Wiki Commons
African American men with signs in front of U.S. Capitol supporting Civil Rights: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Jessee Jackson’s March For Jobs, Washington, DC, 1975: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., arrested in Montgomery, AL, 1958: Associated Press/Wiki Commons
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X, Washington DC, 1964: Marion S Trikosko/Wiki Commons
U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy speaking to CORE Rally, Washington, DC, 1963: Warren K Leffler/Wiki Commons
Selma to Montgomery Civil Rights March, Selma, AL, 1965: National Parks Service/Library of Congress
Ruby Bridges with federal marshals being escorted to school, New Orleans, LA, 1960: Department of Justice/Wiki Commons
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT (Slide Three)
A young girl holds a banner at the March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: Rowland Scherman/Wiki Commons
Civil rights leaders talk with reporters after meeting with President John F. Kennedy, Washington, DC, 1963: Warren K Leffler/Wiki Commons
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Mathew Ahmann, March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: National Archives at College Park/Wiki Commons
Civil Rights March on Washington with leaders marching, Washington, DC, 1963: National Archives at College Park/Wiki Commons
African American women at March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Civil Rights March on Washington at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC, 1963: National Archives at College Park/Wiki Commons
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., with a group of men leading a march, 1964: Jim Curtis/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)
“We March With Selma!”: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Lyndon Johnson signs Civil Rights Act, Washington, DC, 1964: White House Press Office/Wikipedia
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS
American Presidents: All Photos of the American Presidents are courtesy of The White House
ICONIC STARS AND SHOWS FROM THE 1960s AND 1970s
Oprah Winfrey: Alan Light/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)
Bruce Springsteen: Vladimir/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Muhammad Ali, 1966: Dutch National Archives/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/nl/deed.en)
Dolly Parton: Timothy Wildey/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/)
Meryl Streep: Jack Mitchell/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
The Cast of The Jeffersons: CBS Television Network/Wiki Commons
The Andy Griffith Show: CBS Television Network/Wiki Commons
William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy of Star Trek: NBC Television/Wiki Commons
Paul Newman, 1958: Bettmann Archive/Wiki Commons
The Jacksons Victory Tour, 1984: Larry David/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
The Cast of All in The Family: CBS Television Network/Wiki Commons
The Cast of the Dick Van Dyke Show, 1962: Credit Rogers & Cowan/Wiki Commons
The Cast of M*A*S*H: CBS Television/Wiki Commons
Stevie Wonder: Thomas Hawk/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/)
David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser of Starsky & Hutch, 1975-1979
Empty room of Continental Congress: Wangjun Jia/Adobe Stock
Signing of Declaration of Independence: John Trumbull/Wiki Commons
Immigrants coming to Statue of Liberty, New York City, NY: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial: Michael Moretti
Bald eagle flying: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
U.S. troops raising the flag on Iwo Jima: Courtesy of Department of Defense
Statue of Liberty in harbor from troops returning home: Office of War Information/National Archives
Soldiers on ship returning home to New York: Office of War Information/National Archives
Soldiers exiting ship: Courtesy of Department of Defense
Wounded soldiers returning home to the USA from World War II: Courtesy of Department of Defense
World War II end and world celebrates: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Mother welcomes home son: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Wife and son welcome home soldier: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
White picket fence welcome: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Men and women celebrate VJ Day in streets: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Family rushes to meet returning soldier: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Soldier greeting little girl with Welcome Home Sign: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Wounded soldier in street after parade: Associated Press
Eagle flying: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
John and Jacqueline Kennedy visit Dallas, 1963: Universal Newsreels. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
John Kennedy horse-drawn caisson: Universal Newsreels. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
John Kennedy Jr. salutes caisson: Universal Newsreels. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
Martin Luther King, “Free at last!” clip: Rick Ray/ Shutterstock
Bald eagle flying: blackboxguild/Shutterstock
Martin Luther King Jr. Dream Speech, 1963: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Sunrise over Everglades National Park, FL: B-Rollstock/Adobe Stock
Arlington National Cemetery, VA: rickray/Adobe Stock
Harper’s Ferry, WV: Stock Video/Envato Elements
A man standing on cliff of Grand Canyon National Park, AZ: Stock Video//Envato Elements
Haystack Rock, Cannon Beach, OR: Bogdan Pictures/Adobe Stock
Aerial view of sunset with autumn foliage, White Mountains, NH: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Aerial view of Niagara Falls State Park, NY: rodphotography/Adobe Stock
Cooks Forest, Appalachian Mountains, PA: Kinopicz/Adobe Stock
Rainforest jungles on Kauai, HI: Pro Studio/Adobe Stock
Golden Gate Bridge, CA: PicaPixel/Adobe Stock
Stone Mountain State Park, GA: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Lookout Mountain, TN: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Edmund Pettus Bridge, Selma, AL: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Lake in Mississippi: Zach/Adobe Stock
Mt. Rushmore National Memorial, SD: joshuajohnson/Adobe Stock
Eagle flying: Doug Jensen/Shutterstock
Interior of the Lincoln Memorial at night: Demetrius Fair/Adobe Stock
Interior of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial at night: Saser/Adobe Stock
Historic document, 1st Amendment: cacti/Adobe Stock
Women protesting for Women’s Rights: Vane Nunes/Adobe Stock
Border wall along U.S. and Mexico border: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Burning books: sergeyxsp/Envato Elements
Constitution burning away: NTB/Adobe Stock
Confederate flag: ManuMata/Envato Elements
Independence Hall, Philadelphia, PA: Zenstratus/Adobe Stock
Statue of Liberty at night, New York City, NY: VIA Films/Adobe Stock
Eagle flying around Statue of Liberty, New York City, NY: Stock Video/Envato Elements
American flag waving: Borka Kiss/Shutterstock
AMERICA
Song by Jack Murphy
Ex-Marines and winter scenes in 1945
Gee, it was great to be alive.
Soda-jerks in khaki shirts
Fresh back from a war
Safe and sound and well in sight of shore.
All the families were waiting
All the widows were dating
Everyone had grown up so fast
Home at last.
Chorus
Think about America then
She’ll love you if you let her again
We never had it better than when we stick together
We can weather any storm.
Picket lines and protest signs in 1964
Doing our best to stop a war.
Arm-in-arm on a Woodstock farm
Gypsy Angels play
Catching a breeze from Monterey.
All the children were turning
All the ghettos were burning
While the voice told the crowd, so vast
“Free at last!”
Chorus
Think about America then
She’ll love you if you let her again
We never had it better than when we stick together
Bridge
Cold wind; the river’s frozen over
Storm clouds rolling in again.
No one around that she can turn to
She used to have so many friends.
All on her own now
All the children are grown now
All that’s left of the brave and the free
Is you and me.
Chorus
Think about America then
She’ll love you if you let her again
We never had it better than when we stick together
Think about America then
She’ll love you if you let her again
We never had it better than when we stick together!
Repeat chorus
“Ask not what your country can do for you;
ask what you can do for your country.”
PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY
“I really do want to move forward with updating AMERICA, starting with post-9/11, up. Let’s plot out our changes and get on it. Are you free tomorrow?”
“Let me check my calendar,” I dryly thought to myself. I mean, how many of these hours-long Skype video calls with David Soul can one girl take in a lifetime, am I right?
Yeah. Even after 14 years of a very close friendship, the man still gave me goosebumps—and he knew it.
So on to the revision for AMERICA we all went. In fact, two of us traveled from the United States, and one of us (with her husband) traveled from Australia, to be with David and his wife Helen for a two-week stay at a beautiful farm in the remote English countryside. There we all plotted and planned our vision for a new (revised) AMERICA, this one much shorter, more ‘generic,’ focusing it on who we were as a nation, but also on who we still are—while we still can be.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH
THE ORIGINAL VERSION
Below the video (scroll down) are but a few of David’s notes and thoughts regarding AMERICA (the film), AMERICA REVISED (the video), and America (the country). This shortened version of our film is part one of a two-part project. Our only teaser for AMERICA Part Two is this: it isn’t a video—and it’s much more meaningful than what we’ve done here. So, please stay tuned. The AMERICA project is but one in a series of David’s in-progress projects that we are dedicated to finishing in his name.
It’s a privilege to be able to do so.
—Laura, with Lisa and Alison
Team Soul
Actor/director and musician David Soul, co-star of the iconic 1970s television series, Starsky and Hutch, created and directed a 28-minute documentary called AMERICA, based on a song of the same name.
The song, written by Jack Murphy and recorded by David 45 years ago, wasn’t released until 2020—as David’s contribution to the presidential election. Since then, David worked on revising the film into something much shorter and a lot more generic, and planned to release it today, July 4, well in time for the 2024 election. In his name, we herewith finish the video and bring his vision to life.
We are reminded by David’s AMERICA that we must unite together in our continuing journey to form “a more perfect union”; in essence, to ensure that the promises of equality and justice for all Americans, enshrined within the United States Constitution, are fully realized.
DAVID’S MUSINGS ON AMERICA
* * *
On our Team America rendezvous at a farm in the English countryside: “Really looking forward to our time together. Lots to talk about and strategize. But first, and before we get into anything of the future, let’s go back to AMERICA (our contribution to a kinder America and perhaps even beyond).”
* * *
“Lisa, I was really touched by the response from the person in Australia who sort of stumbled onto the site and found a 28-minute video called AMERICA and then gave it such a meaningful review. So much so that I had to go back and look at the film one more time, months after having seen it the last time. I was in tears … not because it’s such a great film, but because it strikes such a chord of truth within—whether American or Australian. We need to see more of this kind of thing that goes beyond the political polemics that keep us from realizing that we and our children have a future. What kind of future are we going to encourage?”
* * *
“Lots to think about if we want to bring our film up-to-date. In the scenario above, the song, which starts out with such post-WWII hope and an eagle that takes us through events, both good and bad, finally lands on the shoulder of MLK (“I Have a Dream”), and cannot go further. The eagle, along with the song, crumbles into oblivion and darkness … a harsh reminder that, if we don’t take care of each other, if we don’t stick together, this precious gift that we’ve been born into will be taken away. There are consequences for taking the freedoms and responsibilities of citizens away, of destroying good will, and caring about ’the other.’”
* * *
On MAGA: “What we want to show is the substance behind what they represent and their view of what America is about, what they have to say in this divided country, and how much people can embrace the history, the legacy, the possibility of Democracy vs. the ME-ism of the other side, is what it’s about. On what basis do the fascists—the Trumpists—base their racism that can so quickly turn to justifiable (in their terms) violence? And, on-the-other-hand, how do we hold onto and demand that the values we have established for our country—and of which Obama speaks with such reverence and urgency—be upheld?”
* * *
On fascism in America: “We have to go online against this behavior. It’s happening all over the U.S: banning books, real history, fear of facing ourselves and our past. Reminds me of President Franklin Roosevelt: ‘The only thing we have to fear is fear itself!’ By denying the truth, we leave lies to our children … and our future.”
* * *
“God, how I wish we had more of these representatives, this kind of lawmaker, working for us in Congress.”
Watch here: Eric Swalwell gives the single BEST speech shredding Republicans you’ll ever hear
* * *
Reflections after the 2020 election: “We have begun the journey of the restoration of the SOUL of America. I am so relieved. I think the real issue here is that Democracy has survived with the election. And we have to say it’s more important that we lift the process and believe in the law and the evidence and not get crazy about what [Trump] will do. He has only one interest—himself. But AMERICA is bigger than that. Please, let’s not buy into the bullshit of what a self-centered, sociopathic narcissist will do. We will rise above that.”
* * *
On Abraham Lincoln’s ‘A Fragment on Slavery’ [see below]: “Quite extraordinary. Makes absolute sense, absolute logic, but don’t count on any members of the so-called ‘party of Lincoln (GOP)’ to buy into that explanation. These political descendants of Lincoln put power ahead of common sense. I love the handwritten version. HE [Lincoln] wrote it … must have thought about it for a while.”
If A can prove, however conclusively, that he may, of right, enslave B—why may not B snatch the same argument, and prove equally, that he may enslave A?
You say A is white and B is black. It is color, then; the lighter, having the right to enslave the darker? Take care. By this rule, you are to be a slave to the first man you meet with a fairer skin than your own.
You do not mean color exactly? You mean whites are intellectually the superiors to blacks, and therefore have the right to enslave them? Take care again. By this rule, you are to be slave to the first man you meet with an intellect superior to your own.
But say you, it is a question of interest; and, if you can make it your interest, you have the right to enslave another. Very well. And if he can make it his interest, he has the right to enslave you.
* * *
“One afterthought: Emmett Till’s death and Martin Luther King’s [‘I Have a Dream’] speech both came on my birthday, August 28.”
* * *
On a casual moment picked up on police body cam during the George Floyd Murder: “One haunting, seemingly innocent image that keeps coming back to me from the George Floyd segment in our film, is this:
“A man, on his stomach, handcuffed and restrained by three police officers, is dying … he can’t breathe. He cries for his mother. One of the police officers, with his knee pressed on the neck of the dying man, casually, callously ignores the pleas of both the dying man who can’t move or breathe, as well as the cries of the public witnessing his death, and what does the police officer do? While continuing to apply pressure, ignoring the pleas of both the restrained man and the public, and to further show us his intent, his arrogance, and how time is of no concern to him, he spots a pebble in the tread of the tire in front of him, and picks it out as if to say, ‘This disturbing pebble is of greater significance than squeezing the life out of this man trapped under my knee.’
“Think about it.
“Also, check out the Emmett Till anti-lynching bill introduced in 2019 and still not passed because of Rand Paul.”
* * *
“Who are these uniformed gestapo Mo-Fuckers who think they can make laws on the spot with no regard for the law? Sworn to uphold the law and to ‘serve and protect’? It’s an excuse for violating people and their rights. Makes my blood boil.”
* * *
On a meme of Donald Trump nailed to a cross with Nancy Pelosi spearing him and Melania bathing his feet: “I don’t care if you’re a believer or an atheist … this is an abomination. This is BOTTOM-OF-THE-BARREL apostasy … religious or political. Who are these assholes?”
* * *
On the bald eagle he drew for our wrap-up: “OK … so here’s your damn EAGLE [drawing] … and if anyone asks, tell ’em a 3rd grader did it.”
* * *
About the 2020 Election: “It’s not about the candidate primarily … it’s about the constitutionally guaranteed right of every citizen to VOTE. We’ve already seen that fight in our earlier scenes … and it’s still going on. This point is not about Joe Biden or the ‘we should vote for him.’ It’s about the RIGHT TO VOTE for everyone qualified to vote, especially important as we move into this one drawn-out period of electioneering in our country.”
* * *
On the election results, November 7, 2020: “WooHoo!!!!!!! Joe’s done it!”
Production Credits
David Soul
Director / Editor
Laura Moretti
Editor & Film Production
Lisa Adair
Production Content Coordinator
Alison Knox
Legal Consultant
On-Film Credits
IMAGES AND FOOTAGE
Adobe Stock
Associated Press
Audio Jungle
Audio Network
Envato Elements
Getty Images
Shutterstock
COURTESY IMAGES AND FOOTAGE
Black Past
Department of Defense
Flickr
Greenwood Cultural Center
Kent State University Libraries, May 4 Collection, Kent State University New Services May 4 photographs; Kent State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives
Library of Congress
Michael Moretti
NASA
NASA Langley Research Center
National Archives
National Park Service
Newspapers.com
News Service: May 4 photographs. Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives.
Oklahoma Historical Society
The White House
Unsplash
Wikimedia
Wikipedia
Wiki Commons
Image Credits
Bigfoot’s band on Pine Ridge Reservation, SD, 1891: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
March of the Sioux, Great Plains, 1905: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Purchase of Manhattan Island, 1909: Wiki Commons
Scene on board slave ship, circa 1830: Archivist/Adobe Stock
President Thomas Jefferson: Rembrandt Peale/Wikipedia
Slave auction; slaves treated as objects: Mannaggia/Adobe Stock
Slaves in cotton field: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
‘His name is Gordon’: Matthew Brady/Wiki Commons
Frederick Douglass: George K Warren/Wiki Commons
President Abraham Lincoln: Alexander Gardner/Wiki Commons
WWII airplanes: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Normandy Invasion, France, June 1944: U.S. Coast Guard/National Archives
Dead soldier on Omaha Beach, France, 1944: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Eisenhower talking to U.S. troops: Unknown U.S. Army Photographer/Wikipedia
WW II soldiers playing piano in Normandy, France: National Archives U.S.A.
USAFF 64th Fighter Squadron, 1943: Nick Parrino/Wiki Commons
Tuskegee Airmen, circa May 1942: U.S. Air Force/Wiki Commons
Soda jerk flipping ice cream: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Wounded soldier on crutches in street with American flag: Associated Press
‘Kennedy Murdered’ newspaper headline: Ft. Worth Star Telegram
President Lyndon Johnson sworn in on plane: Cecil W. Stoughton/Wiki Commons
U.S. soldiers and helicopters during the Vietnam War: Horst Faas/Associated Press
U.S. Marines running from helicopter on fire during the Vietnam War: Horst Faas/Associated Press
Anti-Vietnam War protestors: Bill Ingraham/Associated Press
Vietnamese women and children hide in river at Bao Trail during the Vietnam War: Horst Faas/Associated Press
Vietnam War U.S. wounded: Associated Press
Soldier standing over fallen dead in field during the Vietnam War: Dang Van Phuoc/Associated Press
Soldier standing at Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC: Sgt. Ken Scar/Department of Defense
Line of cars to Woodstock jam highway, 1969: Associated Press
Crowd shot of Woodstock, 1969: James M. Shelley/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
Altamont concert fans, 1969: Associated Press
Jimi Hendrix at Monterey Pop Festival, 1967: Bruce Fleming/Associated Press
Kent State, 1970; National Guards face-off with protesters: May 4 Collection, Kent State University New Services May 4 photographs; Kent State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives
Students hiding behind cars, Kent State, 1970: News Service May 4 photographs. Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives.
Newspaper headline from Kent State University, 1970: Newspapers.com
Girls giving peace sign to troops: Associated Press
Anti-Vietnam War protesters march down Fifth Ave., New York City, NY, 1968: Associated Press
The Watts Rebellion, 1965: New York World-Telegram/Library of Congress
Man being forced into police car, The Watts Rebellion, 1965: New York World-Telegram/Wiki Commons
Man with upside down flag outside The White House, Washington, DC: Associated Press
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and crowd at March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: U.S. Marine Corp/Wiki Commons
Shot of crowd at March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: Shutterstock
Katherine Johnson’s equation for Flight-Path Angle of a Reentry Vehicle in the Upper Atmosphere: NASA
Katherine Johnson: NASA/Langley Research Center
Apollo 11 astronauts, 1969: NASA
Apollo 11 rocket takes off, 1969: NASA
Mission Control for Apollo 11, 1969: NASA
Apollo 11 rocket lift-off, 1969: NASA
NASA staff watch Apollo 11 launch, 1969: NASA
Apollo 11 rocket, 1969: NASA
Buzz Aldrin on the Moon, July 20, 1969: NASA
President Barack Obama gives Medal of Freedom to Katherine Johnson, November 24, 2015: NASA
NATIVE AMERICANS
Lewis & Clark at Three Forks, MT: Edgar Samuel Paxson/Wiki Commons
Pretty Group at Indian Tent: John C.H. Grabill Collection/LOC/Wiki Commons
Native Americans in headdress standing in group with Native American Woman, pointing: Adobe Stock
Birds-eye view of canyon at Wounded Knee Massacre, SD; dead horses and Indians: Northwestern Photo Co/Wiki Commons
Chief Joseph and family: Washington State History Museum/Wiki Commons
Dewey Beard, aka Iron Hail: Wikimedia
Eight Crow prisoners under guard at Crow Agency, MT, 1887: U.S. Department of Defense/National Archives at College Park Collections/Wiki Commons
Survivors of Wounded Knee Massacre: John C.H. Grabill Collection/Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Lewis and Clark on the Lower Columbia, 1905: Charles Marion Russell/Wiki Commons
Native Americans from Southeastern Idaho: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
Blackfeet painting history: Bain News Service/Library of Congress
Sauk Indian family: F.A. Rinehart/Library of Congress
Joseph Dead Feast Lodge: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
The Great Hostile Camp; birds-eye view of Lakota Sioux camp: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Arizona’s Salt River Project, digging canals: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Ta-ayz-slath, wife of Geronimo, and one child: Denver Library/Wikipedia
U.S. Army-Calvary Pursuing Indians: The United States Army-Navy/Wiki Commons
NATIVE AMERICAN PORTRAITS
Goyaale: The U.S. National Archives/Wikipedia
Black Elk and Black Elk of the Oglala Lakota as grass dancers: National Anthropological Archives/Wiki Commons
Captain Jack: Wikipedia/Wiki Commons
Chief Joseph: National Portrait Gallery/Wikipedia
Chief Seattle: Wiki Commons
Crazy Horse: Wikipedia/Wiki Commons
Geronimo: Wikipedia
Rain-in-the-Face: Orlando Scott Goff/Wiki Commons
Red Cloud and other Sioux: Brady-Handy Photograph Collection (LOC)/Wiki Commons
Heebe-tee-tse of the Shoshone Nation: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Sitting Bull by D.F. Barry: D.F. Barry/Wikimedia
White Buffalo: Frank A. Rinehart/Wikki Commons
FOUNDING OF AMERICA & PILGRIMS
Protecting The Settlers: John Ross Browne/Wikipedia
Jamestown Massacre, 1622: Matthaeus Merian/Wikipedia
Discovery of the Mississippi: William Henry Powell/Wiki Commons
Pilgrim Fathers leaving England: Tony Baggert/Adobe Stock
Pilgrim Fathers arrive in America: Archivist/Adobe Stock
Captain John Smith trying to get more food for the settlers: Colonial Jamestown Historical Park/ National Park Service,
Landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, MA: Library of Congress
Pilgrims Going to Church: George Henry Broughton/Wiki Commons
The Departure of the Pilgrim Fathers from Delfshaven on their Way to America: Adam Willaerts/Wiki Commons
Embarkation of the Pilgrims: Robert Walter Weir/Wiki Commons
Thanksgiving at Plymouth: Jennie Augusta Brownscombe/Wiki Commons
The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth, Fall 1621: Jennie Augusta Brownscombe/Wiki Commons
The First Thanksgiving, Fall 1621: Jean Leon Gerome Ferris/Wiki Commons
Penn’s Treaty with the Indians: Benjamin West/Wiki Commons
AMERICAN REVOLUTION
Close-up of the United States Constitution: klikk/Adobe Stock
Battle of Springfield, NJ: John Ward Dunsmore/Wiki Commons
Boston Tea Party, Boston, MA, December 16, 1773: Library of Congress/Wikipedia
Battle of Cowpens, SC, October 18, 1781: William Ranney/Wiki Commons
Evacuation Day and Washington’s Triumphal Entry in New York: E.P. & L. Restein/Wikipedia
First Recognition of the American Flag by a Foreign Government: Edward Moran/Wiki Commons
Foundation of the American Government: Henry Hintermeister/Wiki Commons
Benjamin Franklin’s Return to Philadelphia, PA, 1785: Jean Leon Gerome Ferris/Wiki Commons
Louis-Joseph de Montcalm trying to stop the massacre: Alfred Bobbett/Wiki Commons
Nancy Morgan Hart: Central Intelligence Agency/Wiki Commons
George Washington Crossing the Delaware: Emanuel Leutze/Wikipedia
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS
American Presidents: All Photos of the American Presidents are courtesy of The White House
SLAVERY
John Brown: Augustus Washington/Wiki Commons
Black woman with iron mask of slavery: Thales/Adobe Stock
Booker T. Washington: Frances Benjamine Johnston/Wikipedia
Cotton pickers and overseer around 1850: Wiki Commons
Frederick Douglass: Liljenquist Family Collection/Library of Congress
Harriet Tubman: Harvey B. Lindsley/Library of Congress
Picking cotton at Angola State Farm, near New Orleans, LA: Andres David Lytle Sr./Wiki Commons
Enslaved housekeeper Selina Gray and two of her daughters: National Park Service
African American slave family in front of wooden house, VA: G.H. Houghton/Library of Congress
Five generations on Smith’s Plantation, Beaufort, SC: Timothy H. O’Sullivan/Library of Congress
Escaped slaves at Foller’s house, Cumberland Landing, VA, 1862: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
AMERICAN CIVIL WAR
President Abraham Lincoln, Det. Allan Pinkerton, and Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand at Battle of Antietam, 1862: Alexander Gardner/Library of Congress
Surgeons of 3rd Division before a hospital tent, Petersburg, VA: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Tent life of the 31st Penn. Inf. at Queen’s Farm, Washington, DC: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Det. Allan Pinkerton on horseback, Battle of Antietam, 1862: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Gen. John Calwell and staff in front of tent, American Civil War: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, 1964: National Park Service
President Abraham Lincoln on the battlefield of Antietam, 1862: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
President Abraham Lincoln and Gen. George McClellan in tent, Antietam, 1862: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Capt. George Armstrong Custer with confederate prisoner (and former classmate): Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Bealeton, VA, Officer’s mess, NY volunteers: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
The staff of Gen. Fitz-John Porter in front of tent with Capt. George Armstrong Custer and a dog: Liljenquist Family Collection/Library of Congress
Abraham Lincoln Assassin John Wilkes Booth: Alexander Gardner/Library of Congress/Wikipedia
Maryland, Antietam, President Abraham Lincoln on the Battlefield: War Department/U.S. National Archives/Wikipedia
Gen. William Sherman leaning on breach of gun, Atlanta, GA: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
American Civil War dead in front of Dunker Church, Antietam, MD: Civil War Photographs/Library of Congress
Frances L. Clatin, a woman who disguised herself as a man to fight in the American Civil War: Samuel Masury/Library of Congress
Union soldiers, dead on the battlefield of Gettysburg, PA: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS
American Presidents: All Photos of the American Presidents are courtesy of The White House
IMMIGRANTS
Immigrants arriving at a dock in early 20th century: Szalai/Adobe Stock
Arriving at Ellis Island, NY, 1920: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Four immigrants and their belongings looking out over the water: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Deaf children, St. Rita’s School, Cincinnati, signing Star Spangled Banner: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Colossal hand and torch, Statue of Liberty: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Immigrant mother and daughter, Ellis Island, NY, 1902: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Immigrants at Ellis Island, NY, 1902: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Italian men await admission processing at Ellis Island, NY: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Newly arrived European immigrants at Ellis Island, NY, 1921: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Crowd of European immigrants and their luggage arriving in NY Harbor, 1913: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Mulberry St., NY City’s Little Italy, NY, 1900: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Awaiting examination on Ellis Island, NY: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
INNOVATION & PROGRESS (Slide One)
Paparazzi: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
Interior of an antique dentist office: dbvirago/Adobe Stock
Antique 1885 brick masons from Iowa: Donna/Adobe Stock
Antique blacksmith and carpenter, 1885: Donna/Adobe Stock
1890s Victorian grocery store with stocked shelves: Donna/Adobe Stock
First U.S. rocket launched at Cape Canaveral, FL, 1950: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Thomas Edison and George Eastman with motion picture camera, 1925: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Headquarters staff, American Red Cross Disaster Relief, Tulsa, OK, 1921, after race riots: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
African American postal employees sorting mail: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
African American men shoveling snow, Washington, DC: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Baseball player, Herman “Germany” Schaefer, trying out a camera in New York, 1911: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Street vendor selling ices in NYC, NY, 1938: Prints and Photographs Division/ Library of Congress
Ford Lincoln coupe parked in front of Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC, 1925: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
INNOVATION & PROGRESS (Slide Two)
1910 Model T Ford: Harry Shipler/Wikipedia
Orville and Wilbur Wright and the first flight, December 17, 1903, Kitty Hawk, NC: John T. Daniels/Wiki Commons
J.D. Semler and family near Woods Park, NE, 1886: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Factory workers: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
Assembly line: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
A classroom full of children, Boston, MA, 1892: Alden Photo Co./Unsplash (https://unsplash.com/license)
North American miners, circa 1900: Archivist/Adobe Stock
Thomas Edison’s first movie machine, the Kinetoscope, 1886: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Workers on Ford assembly line in Michigan, 1913: Wiki Commons
Trolley cars on Canal Street, New Orleans, LA, 1901: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Alice C. Evans working in her lab in Washington, DC: Prints & Photographs Online Category/Library of Congress
Two grandmothers keeping up production schedule during World War II, FL, 1942: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
African American inventors Charles Baker and another man standing behind radiator system, 1906: Martin W. Bode/Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Alexander Bell’s first telephone: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
B-24 Liberator bombers assembly line, Ft. Worth, TX, 1942: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Man fueling car in Washington, DC, 1920s: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Scientist conducting lab experiment in cancer research facility, 1951: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Thomas A Edison in West Orange NJ lab, 1901: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Woman war worker checks 1,000 bomb cases, Omaha, NE, 1943: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Mail wagon in Washington, DC, 1916: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
INNOVATION & PROGRESS (Slide Three)
Logging railway, 1904: Archivist/Adobe Stock
American women shipbuilders during World War I: Brian/Adobe Stock
Peter Cooper’s Tom Thumb train, circa 1829: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Pecan shellers cracking nuts, San Antonio, TX, 1939: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Horse-drawn potato digger on a farm near Caribou, ME, 1940: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Pedestrians waiting at railroad crossing for train, CA: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Iron worker at Empire State Building construction site, New York City, NY, 1930: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Lincoln Memorial construction site, Washington, DC, 1920: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Women sewing American flags, Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York City, NY, 1916-20: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
New York City firemen on their high-pressure fire engine, New York City, NY, 1908-1916: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
CELEBRITIES & ICONS
B.B. King: Heinrich Klaffs/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en)
Jimmy Stewart studio publicity still: Studio Publicity Still/Wikipedia
The Little Rascals cast: everettovrk/Adobe Stock
Thomas Edison: Louis Bachrach/Wikipedia
Ernest Hemingway: Lloyd Arnold/Wikipedia
Elvis Presley: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Wiki Commons
Mark Twain: A.F. Bradley/Wiki Commons
Amelia Earhart: Underwood & Underwood/Wiki Commons
Walt Whitman: George C Cox/Wiki Commons
Jackie Robinson: Bob Sandberg/Wiki Commons
Bob Dylan: F. Antolin Hernandez/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)
Albert Einstein: Ferdinand Schmutzer/Wiki Commons
Sidney Poitier: Wiki Commons
Lucille Ball: CBS Television/Wiki Commons
1921 TULSA RACE MASSACRE, TULSA, OK, 1921
Parade down Greenwood Ave., Tulsa, OK, 1920s: Black Past
Maggie Walker and Staff of the Independent Order and St. Luck Penny Savings Bank: Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site/MAWA 7231/National Park Service
Scene of destruction during the riot: Greenwood Cultural Center
Mr. Mann’s store and employees: Greenwood Cultural Center
Newspaper headline that sparks riot: Wikimedia
Mob on foot and in cars outside courthouse: Greenwood Cultural Center
Mt. Zion Baptist Church burning: Greenwood Cultural Center
Race massacre victim in streets: Greenwood Cultural Center
Fire behind buildings, street view: Oklahoma Historical Society
Image of destruction of Greenwood: Greenwood Cultural Center
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT (Slide One)
At the bus station in Durham, NC, 1940: Jack Delano/Wikipedia
Masked KKK member holds noose outside car window: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
John Lewis confronted by police at Selma to Montgomery March, Selma, AL, 1965: Spider Martin/National Archives
A lynching in Duluth, MN, 1920: Wikipedia
Mamie Till looks over the body of her son, Emmett Till, at the morgue, 1955: David Jackson/Wiki Commons
KKK at demonstration in Tampa, FL, 1939: Associated Press/Wiki Commons
KKK in Muncie, IN, 1922: William Arthur Swift/Wiki Commons
Bedford-Stuyvesant riot of 1964, New York City, NY: Stanley Wolfson/Wiki Commons
Rex Theatre for Colored People: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Students protest desegregation in Clinton, OH: Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
Protest of integration of Central High School, Little Rock, AR, 1959: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
African American man drinking from ‘colored’ water fountain, OK, 1939: Russell Lee/Wiki Commons
“No beer sold to Indians”: Marion Post Wolcott/Wiki Commons
Pueblo Indians at U.S. Capitol, Washington, DC, January 15, 1923: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
National Women’s Party demonstration in front of White House, Washington, DC, 1918: Everett Collection/Shutterstock
Tallahassee Civil Rights March, FL, 1971: Wiki Commons
‘Colored’ drinking fountain at Halifax County Courthouse, NC, 1938: John Vachon/Wiki Commons
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT (Slide Two)
John Lewis, U.S. House of Representatives, 1964: Marion S Trikosko/Wiki Commons
Rosa Parks mugshot: GPA Photo Archive/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/)
African American teenager attacked by police dog, 1963: Credit Bill Hudson/Associated Press
Cesar Chavez on march to Sacramento with United Farm Workers,1975: John Malmin/Wiki Commons
Civil Rights protesters at Woolworth’s sit-in, Durham, NC, 1960: State Archives of North Carolina/Wiki Commons
Civil Rights march halted at Edmund Pettus Bridge, 1965: Jack Rabin Collection on Alabama Civil Rights and Southern Activists, Pennsylvania State University/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/)
Freedom Riders bus firebombed by KKK, Anniston, AL, 1961: U.S. National Park Service/Wiki Commons
African American men with signs in front of U.S. Capitol supporting Civil Rights: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Jessee Jackson’s March For Jobs, Washington, DC, 1975: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., arrested in Montgomery, AL, 1958: Associated Press/Wiki Commons
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X, Washington DC, 1964: Marion S Trikosko/Wiki Commons
U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy speaking to CORE Rally, Washington, DC, 1963: Warren K Leffler/Wiki Commons
Selma to Montgomery Civil Rights March, Selma, AL, 1965: National Parks Service/Library of Congress
Ruby Bridges with federal marshals being escorted to school, New Orleans, LA, 1960: Department of Justice/Wiki Commons
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT (Slide Three)
A young girl holds a banner at the March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: Rowland Scherman/Wiki Commons
Civil rights leaders talk with reporters after meeting with President John F. Kennedy, Washington, DC, 1963: Warren K Leffler/Wiki Commons
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Mathew Ahmann, March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: National Archives at College Park/Wiki Commons
Civil Rights March on Washington with leaders marching, Washington, DC, 1963: National Archives at College Park/Wiki Commons
African American women at March on Washington, Washington, DC, 1963: Prints and Photographs Division/Library of Congress
Civil Rights March on Washington at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC, 1963: National Archives at College Park/Wiki Commons
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., with a group of men leading a march, 1964: Jim Curtis/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)
“We March With Selma!”: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Lyndon Johnson signs Civil Rights Act, Washington, DC, 1964: White House Press Office/Wikipedia
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS
American Presidents: All Photos of the American Presidents are courtesy of The White House
ICONIC STARS AND SHOWS FROM THE 1960s AND 1970s
Oprah Winfrey: Alan Light/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)
Bruce Springsteen: Vladimir/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Muhammad Ali, 1966: Dutch National Archives/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/nl/deed.en)
Dolly Parton: Timothy Wildey/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/)
Meryl Streep: Jack Mitchell/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
The Cast of The Jeffersons: CBS Television Network/Wiki Commons
The Andy Griffith Show: CBS Television Network/Wiki Commons
William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy of Star Trek: NBC Television/Wiki Commons
Paul Newman, 1958: Bettmann Archive/Wiki Commons
The Jacksons Victory Tour, 1984: Larry David/Wiki Commons (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
The Cast of All in The Family: CBS Television Network/Wiki Commons
The Cast of the Dick Van Dyke Show, 1962: Credit Rogers & Cowan/Wiki Commons
The Cast of M*A*S*H: CBS Television/Wiki Commons
Stevie Wonder: Thomas Hawk/Flickr (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/)
David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser of Starsky & Hutch, 1975-1979
Empty room of Continental Congress: Wangjun Jia/Adobe Stock
Signing of Declaration of Independence: John Trumbull/Wiki Commons
Immigrants coming to Statue of Liberty, New York City, NY: Library of Congress/Wiki Commons
Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial: Michael Moretti
Video Credits
Bald eagle taking off from tree: Doug Jensen/Shutterstock
Bald eagle flying: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
U.S. troops raising the flag on Iwo Jima: Courtesy of Department of Defense
Statue of Liberty in harbor from troops returning home: Office of War Information/National Archives
Soldiers on ship returning home to New York: Office of War Information/National Archives
Soldiers exiting ship: Courtesy of Department of Defense
Wounded soldiers returning home to the USA from World War II: Courtesy of Department of Defense
World War II end and world celebrates: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Mother welcomes home son: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Wife and son welcome home soldier: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
White picket fence welcome: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Men and women celebrate VJ Day in streets: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Family rushes to meet returning soldier: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Soldier greeting little girl with Welcome Home Sign: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Wounded soldier in street after parade: Associated Press
Eagle flying: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
John and Jacqueline Kennedy visit Dallas, 1963: Universal Newsreels. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
John Kennedy horse-drawn caisson: Universal Newsreels. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
John Kennedy Jr. salutes caisson: Universal Newsreels. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
Bald eagle flying: blackboxguild/Shutterstock
Martin Luther King, “Free at last!” clip: Rick Ray/ Shutterstock
Bald eagle flying: Doug Jensen/Shutterstock
Bald eagle flying: blackboxguild/Shutterstock
Martin Luther King Jr. Dream Speech, 1963: Rick Ray/Shutterstock
Yosemite National Park, CA: joshuajohnson/Adobe Stock
Sunrise over Everglades National Park, FL: B-Rollstock/Adobe Stock
Arlington National Cemetery, VA: rickray/Adobe Stock
Harper’s Ferry, WV: Stock Video/Envato Elements
A man standing on cliff of Grand Canyon National Park, AZ: Stock Video//Envato Elements
Haystack Rock, Cannon Beach, OR: Bogdan Pictures/Adobe Stock
Aerial view of sunset with autumn foliage, White Mountains, NH: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Wild bison herd running, UT: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Aerial view of Niagara Falls State Park, NY: rodphotography/Adobe Stock
Wind farm, America’s heartland: Maryshot/Shutterstock
Cooks Forest, Appalachian Mountains, PA: Kinopicz/Adobe Stock
Rainforest jungles on Kauai, HI: Pro Studio/Adobe Stock
Rocky Mountain National Park, CO: Ben/Adobe Stock
Golden Gate Bridge, CA: PicaPixel/Adobe Stock
Badlands National Park, SD: Depthink Productions/Adobe Stock
Stone Mountain State Park, GA: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
The Gateway Arch, St. Louis, MO: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Lookout Mountain, TN: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Edmund Pettus Bridge, Selma, AL: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
Lake in Mississippi: Zach/Adobe Stock
Mt. Rushmore National Memorial, SD: joshuajohnson/Adobe Stock
Eagle flying: Doug Jensen/Shutterstock
The Washington Monument at night as seen from the Lincoln Memorial: Matthew/Adobe Stock
Interior of the Lincoln Memorial at night: Demetrius Fair/Adobe Stock
Interior of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial at night: Saser/Adobe Stock
Historic document, 1st Amendment: cacti/Adobe Stock
Women protesting for Women’s Rights: Vane Nunes/Adobe Stock
Border wall along U.S. and Mexico border: blackboxguild/Adobe Stock
‘Black Lives Matter’ mural on street in New York City, NY: Atmospheric Arts/Adobe Stock
Burning books: sergeyxsp/Envato Elements
Constitution burning away: NTB/Adobe Stock
Confederate flag: ManuMata/Envato Elements
Independence Hall, Philadelphia, PA: Zenstratus/Adobe Stock
The Lincoln Memorial to the Washington Monument: VIA Films/Adobe Stock
Statue of Liberty at night, New York City, NY: VIA Films/Adobe Stock
Eagle flying around Statue of Liberty, New York City, NY: Stock Video/Envato Elements
Bald eagle landing on a rock: Echo Films/Getty Images
American flag waving: Borka Kiss/Shutterstock
“Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”
PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY
