By
Andrew DeMarco
Last week I was watching the ceremonies dedicating the 9-11 Museum at the World Trade Center and all the speakers, in my opinion, did an excellent job; Governor Cuomo, Governor Christie, President Obama and former Mayor Bloomberg short, sweet and poignant. There was no partisanship, no politics, none of the usual nonsense that gets in the way of progress; it was just the way it should be for such a ceremony. After the ceremony, I went to do some chores and after parking my car and getting a quarter for the meter, there it was clear as day “E Pluribus Unum.” This got me thinking, which some would say is dangerous, about that simple Latin phrase.
For those of you not familiar with this motto here is a brief run down. E Pluribus Unum is Latin for “out of many, one.” Sometimes it is translated more loosely as “one from many.” It is found on the Great Seal of the United States, and most U.S. coinage and some currency. This refers to the fact that the United States was formed as a cohesive single nation as the result of the thirteen small colonies joining together. More recently its meaning has come to suggest that out of many peoples, races, religions, languages and ancestries has emerged a single people and nation, illustrating the concept of the melting pot.
E Pluribus Unum, why is it that it seems the only time we really become one is either in times of crisis and occasionally times of elation? Think about it for a moment, from the early 19th century on times of crisis that were turned into battle cries. Remember the Alamo, Remember the Maine, Remember Pearl Harbor and Remember 9-11 were all born out of difficult times and all brought us together, out of many one. I remember asking my parents where they were on Pearl Harbor Day and both could describe vividly where they were and what they were doing. They also remembered where they were on V-E and V-J Day and how everyone just came together with tears of joy.
The same is true with me and September 11th. I remember where I was and how my town had come together. They began collecting anything which might be needed by rescuers and hopefully survivors. This scene was repeated in countless towns all across the country. I also recall blood drives all around the country hopefully for the injured which was another example of the melting pot coming together.
The opposite is also true; one just has to remember the famous “kiss” photo and the mobs in Times Square on V-J Day or the night that it was announced that Osama Bin Laden had been killed and the scenes of celebration in front of the White House. Who can forget the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid and the Miracle on Ice, when a group of college kids, during the height of the cold war, brought together a nation by beating the Russians and eventually winning the gold medal in hockey?
So the question I have is this: Why is it that it seems we only come together in good times or bad or are we really E Pluribus Unum at all times and it just seems to be more noticeable during the good and bad times and why does it seem only during those times?
Some might say that the divisiveness of politics today and the constant bickering between parties gives the appearance that we are no longer that one from many and not many could argue with that reasoning. Maybe if our politicians instead of fighting amongst themselves realized that we are all in this together and we are truly one out of many, it might rub off on the rest of us and bring us together all of the time not just during the good or bad.
So with the dedication of the 9-11 Memorial Museum behind us and Memorial Day just around the corner let’s remember all those from the melting pot that gave their all to make this country great. And let’s also remember that when we stand as one there is nothing that we as a nation cannot do, and history has proven that. So I would like to wish everyone a safe and Happy Memorial Day, and remind you that the next time you see the Great Seal or look at a quarter think of that simple phrase E Pluribus Unum. Let it fill you with a sense of pride and think of truly becoming that melting pot and becoming one at all times not just good or bad, no matter your race, creed or color and may it give you that feeling that Cousin Bob would call that ……Rosy Glow.
Bob's Rosy Glow 