Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt’s Own Program, presented by SweetHeart Soap
Thursday, June 20, 1940
ER: Good day, ladies and gentlemen. I have put off until now answering some of the serious questions which have come in because the times are so serious that I felt most of you had enough gloomy things to think about without concentrating on something serious on this program. I notice, however, that in our family, we discuss these serious problems around the table, and every member of the family is keenly interested in them. So today we will turn to some of these questions. Many letters have arrived asking me to talk about democracy, to tell how I think everyone in this land can have a satisfying life, how people can live and not die for democracy, how we can share the work, the joys, and the sorrows in this world so that we may all be able to enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Well, the first way, of course, is to really try to become a democratic center in the community, to be a person to whom people will turn with the knowledge that they will have a hearing. In this way, you will really know about your community and serve to interpret the meaning of democracy as a way of life.
A representative democracy such as ours is a government which allows its people to govern through the election of representatives. People here are free to express their convictions through the ballot and, if they exercise their power intelligently, they choose good leaders who really represent them. But self-government does not end with the ballot. It is your duty to follow up with the people you elect to see that they perform their duties. Politically, this is what one should do in a democracy where citizens take their duties seriously.
When an entire community has a sense of responsibility for everyone in it, as well as for the community as a whole, then democracy is more than a word—it is a way of life. Under this democratic way of life, every citizen is assured certain things, namely the right to an adequate return for one’s labor in whatever field one is able to contribute it; the right to obtain an education as far as one’s ability allows one to pursue it; the right to basic freedoms of the press, of assembly, of speech, and of religion. And to these rights we must add a concern that every individual shall have a decent place in which to live, a decent chance for health, and adequate recreation. Under those circumstances, democracy lives, grows, and has meaning for every citizen.
In a democratic community it is not necessary that everyone shall have the same things, for all people’s desires and aspirations are not the same. But under such a government everyone shall have equal opportunity, and it is opportunity which is the lifeblood of democracy. It may be necessary for us to die as well as to live for democracy, but we will die gladly to protect this type of freedom and justice for every individual. Dying will seem preferable to living under certain restraints.
In times such as this, it is necessary for every one of us to reexamine some of the fundamental concepts of democracy. We must redefine such words as “patriotism.” We must be sure to understand what the American flag stands for. The American flag represents our history and our ideals. We came from thirteen original states and we have grown from these little red and white bars to the forty-eight symbolized by our forty-eight stars. Patriotism is something which makes me think—as I look at an American flag—of the things I love: the country whose soil is dear to me. I think of the ideals for which other Americans have sacrificed themselves.
Not so long ago, I received a letter which included the interesting thought that some Americans who traced their ancestry to the May-flower took their freedom for granted. The same writer also points out that many other Americans who have come here more recently sometimes abuse our American freedom. I suppose this is a reference to the groups amongst us that are banded together as Nazis, Fascists, or Communists. These groups are troublesome largely because we do not know how great is their influence. Since we have neglected, in many cases, to translate democracy into a way of life for all the people in the nation, and we fear, therefore, the effect of the promise of better things even when those promises are not backed up by performance.
Another correspondent asks what the ordinary woman with limited time and talents can do to become a better citizen. The question of better citizenship for men and women is tied up today, in their minds, with the world situation. Almost every woman I know is marking time until she can really feel that the government has called upon her to do some specific job into which she can throw all her energies. Perhaps the first thing to do, however, is to see to it that we remain calm, poised, and continue to do the things which are routine daily tasks. For instance, I think it is important today that a child returning from school should find a poised, calm mother to whom to bring joys and sorrows, and not one who is jittery and frightened and who takes him convulsively in her arms and talks to him of the dangers which lurk on every side.
I think it is vitally important that we face the present world situation with reality, and consider all the possibilities and probabilities of our future. These have been put before us and will be put before us more and more clearly by the president and responsible people in the government. We owe it not only to ourselves but to the world to preserve our democracy and its freedoms, and we can do it by thinking our problems through calmly and sanely. We cannot do it if we become hysterical and frightened. We probably have a Fifth Column in this country and we do not know where it is or who it is. But we cannot all appoint ourselves unofficial agents to persecute people whom we suspect. There is a properly constituted branch of the government—the Department of Justice—to which any citizen, or alien for that matter, can report anxieties and to which they can apply for protection, which our laws have assured us.
We must do all we can to prevent the rise of racial or religious hatred in this country. And I feel that much of this calm assurance of spirit must come from the women. It is obvious to me that this is a long-time job and it will require the cooperation of men, women, and young people all over this country. It may seem to you that a racial or religious prejudice which does not touch you is something about which you need not concern yourself. But unfortunately, these prejudices do not stay within the bounds of any one category. The feeling spreads and one prejudice engenders another, and a people soon find themselves a prey to fears of all kinds.
This means that we must not believe all the rumors which are spread, and that we should make every effort to find out the truth before we allow ourselves to become too greatly concerned. I have heard many fantastic stories about myself and my family and have never been able to discover their beginnings. I am sure that nearly everyone else has had the same experience. It is far more important to weigh everything you read and hear today in order not to be a party to any injustice or unfairness. The history of what has happened in some countries in Europe should be a terrible example to us. We have proved that we can live in this country in peace with many different racial and religious groups, and we must keep that before us if we hope to prove to the world that the democratic way of life is far superior to any other.
No matter how limited your time or talents, you can give what you have to give to your country by knowing your own community and advocating such laws as will help to make democracy worthwhile for every individual. The diligent living of your citizenship, from day to day, may mean success for democracy in the world of the future, or absolute failure for our ideals.