Has courage skipped this generation?

While searching for some memorabilia recently I stumbled across a large 15x22 inch envelope which was labeled North Carolina Documents 1584-1868. It was so intriguing that I consumed most of an afternoon reading its contents.

Inside the package were 13 historical documents published in 1985 by The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources’ Division of Archives and History. The fascinating contents included both facsimiles of the original documents, as well as typewritten translations of the hard-to-real Olde English penmanship. The first was the 1584 charter given by Queen Elizabeth I to Walter Raleigh to explore our lands. Next was a 1660 deed from King Charles II to Nathaniel Batts for property along the Pasquotank River, given when the Lords Proprietors had title to the southeastern areas of North and South Carolina.  The 1669 Fundamental (first) Constitution of the Carolinas spelled out the government guidelines from the Lords Proprietors.

Further documents included the minutes from the Tryon County (now Gaston) Committee of Safety in 1775, detailing colonists’ protestations over taxes and edicts from England, as well as a copy of the 1776 Halifax Resolves, in which North Carolina delegates to the Continental Congress were instructed to vote for independence from the “Mother Country.”

The packet continued with the 1776 Constitution, supposedly written by Englishman John Locke; the Secession Ordinance of 1861; the Constitutional Revision of 1835; and the revised Constitution of 1868, in the Reconstruction era following the Civil War.

As I read these 13 documents, I was constantly reminded how our North Carolina ancestors pursued freedom by risking their own fortunes and found myself constantly astounded by their incomparable courage in risking all to attain it.

My thoughts shifted to today and in considered some of the things currently experienced. It prompted me to wonder why we don’t see similar levels of courage evidenced now. Let’s cite a few examples.

The White House Correspondence Association dinner is usually an event where the press corps and the president are jocular, poking fun at each other, but there was nothing playful at the recent event. The American President insulted and attacked the press, singling out individuals with demeaning name-calling. It was distasteful, mean-spirited and offensive. Where was the courage of those correspondents present?  Why did they just sit silently and take this churlish behavior? Why didn’t they arise en masse and walk out? That would have been the courageous thing to do. Yes, the President is due respect but there was nothing respectful in his behavior. It did not deserve homage and a mass exodus would have emphatically told him so.

Turning to North Carolina, where is the courageous outrage over the wholesale disenfranchisement of voters wreaked by blatant gerrymandering and obvious disregard of the rights of voters we’ve seen in recent legislation? After fighting so long and hard to gain the right to vote what would our founders say about those obviously tampering with election laws? Why are so many silent?

What would these patriot founders, who back in 1789 recognized the value of education by founding The University of North Carolina, say about the deliberate and destructive dismantling our state’s k-12 public education system? They would likely be outraged by such tepid response.

Further, our founders deliberately and with careful forethought constructed our system of government to include three separate branches. It is noted they wanted our legislature (Assembly) to have more powers than either the executive (Governor) or judicial branches, but they never envisioned the Assembly would attempt to take virtually absolute powers from the executive branch or ignore rulings of the courts. We are witnessing a massive power grab by a small minority of our populous. Why aren’t patriotic North Carolinians revolting over these actions?  

Many of those perpetrating these policies profess to being Christians. They want to publish The Ten Commandments in every schoolhouse. They want to tell women how to treat their own bodies, tell folks how to dress, how to refer to themselves and want to enforce their version of Christianity. But they seem to ignore the teachings of Jesus about feeding the poor, giving to those with less, tending the sick and loving our neighbors. And where are courageous souls when our legislature wants to cut taxes to the bone, ignoring infrastructure, healthcare and many other needs?  

We are a great state, the “goodliest soile under the cope of heaven,” discoverer Ralph Lane proclaimed. And we enjoy a strong economy, good jobs, a wonderful climate and many natural advantages. What has brought us this point in our evolution is the dedication and courage of people who stood up for right, for justice and for the common good.

But has courage skipped this generation?

Tom Campbell is a Hall of Fame North Carolina broadcaster and columnist who has covered North Carolina public policy issues since 1965.  Contact him at tomcamp@ncspin.com