The Perrysburg Exchange Club recently announced the winners of its annual Freedom Shrine essay contest.

“The purpose of the Freedom Shrine is to remind young Americans that the freedoms we enjoy today were not purchased easily and that these gifts must be cherished and protected,” said Tim Waltzer, Exchange Club member and chairperson of the writing contest.

The 30 historical American documents that make up the Freedom Shrine were chosen to exemplify the beginnings of the United States, including the high points that shaped the national character, he explained.

“The documents include the Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, Mayflower Compact, Bill of Rights, Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation, Treaty of Paris, Northwest Ordinance, Washington’s First Inaugural Address and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech, ‘I Have a Dream.’”

“Thousands of Freedom Shrines have been dedicated throughout the United States and Puerto Rico in universities, libraries, schools, state capitals, city halls, at American outposts scattered throughout the world, and at the Perrysburg Junior High School and St. Rose School.”

Each award winner was presented with a plaque and a monetary award, though the pandemic prevented the customary gathering.

R.J. Hershey, PJHS

The United States is an imperfect country. Still, it remains a shining beacon of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in an infinitely flawed world. We cannot perfect our world, but we can try. This is what the finest thinkers of America and the world have done and shall continue to do. The United States of America is a work in progress, an unfished symphony.

The United States of America was founded on three principles that still hold true today: liberty, equality and justice. Liberty is the most necessary of the three for our republican system to function. The freedom to vote is essential and critical to liberty, which we all strive to achieve and perfect. The United States legislative branch is an incredible example of this mission in which all good-hearted human beings try to complete, though it is unreachable. This endless strive for freedom is, in itself, the essence of human determination. Liberty is the freedom of all things; it is essential.

The United Nations is a great stride toward all three of these sacred values, and it is based on these institutions which the free people of the world have built. Justice is freedom in the works, which has evolved with the human mind. One of the most crucial American institutions, our court systems, works tirelessly to determine what justice is and how to implement it. The Constitution is not set in stone, so as the Founding Fathers wished, justice can adapt to our changing social needs. Justice is the basis on which all government is built, the cornerstone on which liberty and equality stand. Justice is what sparks the flame of revolution, a chance at a better world, a more free world.

The United States, and the world, have trouble grasping the concept of true equality. In its purest form, equality is all human beings of the world being equal in all endeavors, regardless of race, religion, or gender. After the spark of revolution and the formation of our new government, the Founding Fathers drafted a Constitution, which could be amended according to the needs of the American people. This Constitution, which has served as the foundation of American government for centuries, has become more just and fair since its inception. The United States has had to face many unjust nations and institutions, such as slavery, the Nazi Regime, and the Japanese Empire. Though it has triumphed through these challenges and become stronger than ever, it has some new and old problems to face in this new age.

The United States is more divided than ever, black or white, poor or rich, religious or secular, Muslim or Christian, Democrat or Republican. These differences have polarized us and divided the human race. These differences have divided us throughout American history, a relic of our primal instincts to be afraid of differences, of the unknown. But, as Thomas Jefferson said at his First Inaugural Address, “But every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle. We have called by different names brethren of the same principle. We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists.” But some of our greatest presidents, the best of our people, have struggled with these differences, making outstanding achievements despite the shameful legacies of their time, for example, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. They made great strides in liberty while owning hundreds of slaves, an apparent contradiction with the goal of human equality. In our modern America, changes are taking place. From the wheat fields of Kansas to the urban maze of suburbia, to the towering metropolises of the coasts -people are protesting these divisions and injustices of America in the hope of a better, stronger Union. The ball of justice and equality is rolling down the ramp of injustice and towards the endless grasslands of freedom.

These ideals, liberty, equality and justice, are eternal, as our American government and institutions rely on them. The torch of these ideals has been handed to us and must continue their work. America is a land of liberty, and we must protect the world from tyranny and injustice. Liberty is most necessary for our republican system to be successful because it provides the foundation for evolving our justice system and better recognizing the equality of all human beings. This is what these ideals stand for and for what they always will.

Ella Ibsen, PJHS

The principles of liberty, equality and justice have served as the foundation for the system of republican government upon which our country was created and still stands today. Our Founding Fathers faced many trials and tribulations in their mission to grant us, the current people, these things that they believed any Government required in order to rightfully be referred to as a republic. It is therefore our responsibility, as was specifically written in the U.S. Constitution, to not only continue to uphold and protect these defining characteristics, but to also be well-informed of their meaning and importance to both history and the present.

Liberty is, of course, synonymous to freedom. In the creation of our government, our founders desired a “free country”–that is, a country run solely by the people where there would be no body of power which would rise above and take control of everyone else.

Liberty does not refer to complete and total anarchy, but instead the prospect of a well-organized and balanced government that is not only run by the citizens ourselves but also chosen by us through the process of election. In a country governed by liberty, we have the power to make our voices heard through writing or speech without fear of persecution if we disagree with the government’s actions or if we desire a certain change to be made. The same can be said of any divine being we choose to worship or any sacred beliefs that we choose to live by. We go about our lives with the comfort of knowing that what our founders believed to be our unalienable rights are protected by the government and that no person will be deprived of those rights without a lawful reason. Liberty is arguably the most determining factor of a republic, because, without liberty, there is no democracy. While there have been many changes and alterations throughout our country's history as those that came before us have learned from the past, the guiding principle of liberty has guaranteed us a free country even now, more than two centuries after its creation.

Equality–the state of all people, regardless of their religion, race, ethnicity, gender, or any other traits that may cause them to appear different among their fellow citizens, being treated the same as one another. Within a society where all people are considered equal, each and every citizen is guaranteed the same rights and responsibilities and in no way singled out due to any of the above factors, unfairly or otherwise. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal...” However, as is often the case throughout history, it took a long time for that general idea to completely take shape. In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. was still fighting for equality as he delivered his well-known “I Have a Dream” speech as part of many non-violent protests in his quest to gain equal rights and prohibit segregation of “colored” people, building on the work and suffering of many before him. Today, segregation has mostly been disbanded throughout our nation’s society and his dream has finally reached a level of reality. Similarly, Susan B. Anthony fought tirelessly for women’s voting rights and the belief that, adding to Thomas Jefferson’s original words, all men and women are created equal, and therefore both deserve an equal playing field on the voting ground as American citizens. The idea of equality is essential to a republic in the sense that if the people are promised certain rights, those rights must apply to all of us as the joint rulers of a free and equal nation. This idea, as many do over time, has evolved throughout history to become one of the grounding principles of our country today.

The meaning of justice can have different definitions among different people, but, to me, it is the belief that everyone deserves a fair consequence for their actions. Throughout the Bill of Rights–specifically Amendments five through seven–James Madison outlined certain processes and procedures on the subject of court rulings for those who have committed a crime or have been charged with a crime in order to ensure that justice is served. However, similar to equality, justice is something that many Americans had to work for throughout the course of history, whether it be for themselves or for others. Arguably the most profound examples were the countless slaves that fought to gain their rightful freedom and for those to whom they were forcibly bound in servitude to face consequences for how they had been treated. Justice is often confused with revenge, but one major difference between the two, and the reason I believe that it is such an important part of our government, is that the consequences must fit the action and be, for the most part, considered fair. Without the guiding hand of justice, it would most likely be much more difficult to put a stop to criminal actions and restore a semblance of peace within our nation.

Our guiding principles of liberty, equality, and justice, and all of those who risked their lives so that we could be supported by these ideals today, helped to guide history and transform this land that the English colonists discovered back in the early 1600s into the strong and united nation that we currently call our home. These ideas are part of what separates this country from other countries, part of what truly defines us as the United States of America. The USA is a place where all people have the liberty to fight for and maintain equality and the power to lend a hand in the rightful distribution of justice. This is above all what makes our country, as Francis Scott Key wrote in the poem that would later become our national anthem, “the land of the free and the home of the brave.”

Patrick Chen, PJHS

Liberty, Equality, and Justice are unarguably the three cornerstones of our nation's history. They serve as the foundation of our republican system, ensuring that each citizen has authority in their government. We see that these ideals are present in our everyday lives and provide the groundwork to achieve the gleaming, sacred “American Dream.”

The first principle of American society is the establishment of freedom for all.

Evidently, since our induction as an independent nation, we, as Americans, have maintained the philosophy of having rights protected and assured by government, free of oppression. In the words of Thomas Jefferson, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” The First Amendment of the Constitution prohibits Congress from authorizing laws that limit the freedoms of speech, religion, press, peaceful assembly, and petition. In this statement, we are given the protection to express our opinions, to unite for change, and to stay updated about world events, without fear of unjust punishment. This sense of independence, in which we are free to live self-reliant lives, has been evident since the protests of the Stamp Act in 1765 and the Civil War ending slavery in 1861.

The second pillar of our union is the suggestion of equality, namely that all men and women, regardless of religion, race, gender, or age, have equal rights and are to be treated as such. I feel that this concept of equality has, though improving, not yet been fulfilled in America. Although lives have been dedicated towards the achievement of this goal, we cannot have truly attained equality while discrimination and racism are still lingering foundations of our nation. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “When the architects of our great republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. The note was a promise that all men, yes black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed to the inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Furthermore, on a systemic level, the income gap between genders and races has been widening. As shown by a study conducted at the Pew Research Center, the fact has not changed: in general, Hispanic, Black, and female employees are paid significantly less and receive fewer benefits than their White and male counterparts.

The third principle of our country is the belief in justice for all. As stated in Amendments Six and Eight, of our Constitution, “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and the district wherein the crime shall have been committed... .” and “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” The Bill of Rights establishes these safeguards to maintain the fairness of the justice system. If we are tried for a crime, we should be able to have trust in the efficacy of the process.

Of these three principles, Justice, Equality, and Liberty, I feel that to move forward, the sense of equality is the most crucial to our nation's success. No matter the magnitude, when we view others as less important or less deserving, we damage the solidarity of our nation, creating divisions between groups of citizens. A divided nation leads to turmoil and civil unrest. Examples of this are common throughout history. In 1939, the spread of fascist beliefs and discrimination brought about World War II (and the Holocaust, one of the worst tragedies in written history). The segregation between Black and White citizens led to the Civil Rights Movement in 1954. Even recently, the George Floyd protests and Black Lives Matter movement were the results of police discrimination and violence against members of the Black community. In our democratic government, a common sense of equality is necessary to uphold the unity of the entire United States of America.

Revisiting the question of what the American Dream is, we see that it, too, is based on the idea of equality. The premise of the American Dream is that in America, regardless of background, one can, with hard work and perseverance, attain a better future for themselves, their family, and generations to come. My parents, when immigrating from a politically unjust China, though familiar and rooted, to America, had little knowledge of the culture, a rough understanding of the language, and limited financial resources. Despite this, by working long hours at minimumwage jobs during the day and studying through the night (my father was working to earn his Ph.D.), my parents were able to raise four children and provide for their futures. Their journey of determination is an example of the American Dream at its strongest.

The three fundamental American values, Liberty, Equality, and Justice, serve as pillars of our nation's history and define who we are as Americans. Our day-to-day lives are influenced by these three words. Without these values, we could not be the civilization of today: the worldwide leader of innovation, human rights, and the ability of democracy.

Elizabeth Kobler, St. Rose School

The United States of America was born out of a tyrannical rule, where the opinions of its inhabitants were chronically ignored and discredited. When forming their new nation, our founders wanted to redo and reform where their predecessors had failed. Taking inspiration from the Roman Republic, the United States formed a government on the basis of importance of individual opinions. The word for this government is Democracy. At the beginning, only specific people had the freedoms of Democracy. Our most important Amendments to the Constitution are those that grant the freedoms of Democracy to every citizen. These three Amendments help define Liberty, the state of being free within a society from oppressive restrictions. These three Amendments prove the words of Thomas Jefferson, that “... all men are created equal.” These three Amendments are the Fifteenth, Nineteenth, and Twenty-Sixth; the Amendments for voting eligibility.

When President Abraham Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, the not -so-United States was at one of its darkest times. A country split, at war with itself. Our country was still relatively young, a fresh “four score and seven years.” Being under a century old, many of our inhabitants recognized that the issue of slavery was unjust and cruel. Many of these slaves were born in America, making them technical citizens. As people born in this country, they deserved the right to make their voices heard. “One-eighth of the whole population” is quite a lot of people whose opinions aren't being heard due to a factor they couldn’t control. All citizens deserve all the rights and freedoms of Democracy, and the 15th Amendment shows the first steps towards equality.

Throughout history, the American citizenship of women was never denied. Although they were considered citizens, they were still denied the right to vote. The official article about Susan B. Anthony’s trial makes a very powerful statement: “How can the consent of the governed be given if the right to vote be denied?”

One of the bases of this country is power coming from the people. How can women consent to a government that denies them the basics of Democracy? How can women consent to a government that defies what governments are meant to do? When a government no longer does its job, it is the right and responsibility of the citizens to change it. Throughout the early 20th century, women protested for their rights. And, finally, on May 19, 1919, the 19th amendment was proposed in Congress. One year and four months later, suffrage was given to women.

Especially in today’s climate, the differentiation between generations is blatantly obvious. Our political opinions, fashion, linguistics and overall view on life vary drastically. Those who grew up in the 1960s and 70s protested for change and peace and were viewed as outlandish and wild by the previous generations. It now seems the roles have shifted, as the younger generations lobby for the change they want, and the youth of the ’60s and ’70s are left in bewilderment. Ronald Reagan said in his address at the Brandenburg Gate that “there is no better way to establish hope for the future than to enlighten young minds,” and the differences between the generations is a key factor of why the 25th amendment is important. This amendment lowered the voting age so that all legal adults have the right to vote, and this shows a more accurate display of the country’s political views. If you’re going to allow 18-year-olds to leave their homes and make important decisions for themselves, why shouldn’t they be able to contribute to important decisions in their country?

Without these three Amendments, a majority of our population wouldn’t have the freedoms of Democracy. Without the Fifteenth Amendment, 23.7 percent of the population wouldn’t be able to vote. Without the Nineteenth Amendment, 49.2 percent of the population wouldn’t be able to vote. Without the Twenty-Sixth Amendment, around 13.9 percent of the population wouldn’t be able to vote. As pointed out in the Susan B. Anthony trial account, “It was we, the people, not we, the white male citizens, nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed this Union. And we formed it, not to give the blessings of liberty, but to secure them; not to the half of ourselves and the half of our posterity, but to the whole people.”

All citizens should have the freedoms of Democracy regardless of uncontrollable circumstances, and these three Amendments help make that possible.

“The purpose of the Freedom Shrine is to remind young Americans that the freedoms we enjoy today were not purchased easily and that these gifts must be cherished and protected.” —Tim Waltzer, Exchange Club member