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Discover Justice in American History

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Discover Justice in American History soei D g American Democracy et. 07 America: The Pursuit of Justice Prepared by Susan Sullivan Lagon,Ph.D., Historian, The Jefferson, Washington, DC The Jefferson, Washington, DC • 1200 16th St. NW • Washington DC, 20036 1 The Jefferson, Washington, DC • 1200 16th St. NW • Washington DC, 20036 How Women Shaped American Life and Culture Prepared by Susan Sullivan Lagon, Ph.D., Historian, The Jefferson, Washington, DC Having rebelled against King George III of England in 1776, the Founders’ main objective was to prevent concentrations of power in any one person or part of government that could lead to tyranny. The U.S. government established under the Constitution in 1787 has two basic organizing principles, both designed to divide power. The first is federalism, a system in which states retain their distinct character and sovereignty over some things while the national government is responsible for others. The second is separation of powers, a functional division among three co-equal branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. To maintain equilibrium, each branch is given specific powers denied to the others, a system known as checks and balances. As an added safeguard, some offices are elected and others appointed, some for specified terms and some for life. Inside The Jefferson The restaurant names--Plume and Quill—are an homage to Thomas Jefferson’s role as the lead author of the Declaration of Independence. American colonists considered themselves English and understood the importance of the rule of law. The Declaration sought to justify what would otherwise be considered an unlawful rebellion by providing a lengthy catalog of the king’s transgressions against his subjects across the ocean. The large gold mirror in Plume reflects federalism with 13 balls representing the original states in a circle formation to underscore continuity. In the Book Room, notice a similar formation of 13 stars in the sailing painting. In the lobby, the eight original documents that bear Jefferson’s signature provide illustrations which speak to both federalism and separation of powers. Note his different roles: Governor of Virginia, Secretary of State under George Washington, President, and private citizen. Day One Walking Tour Turn right out the front door of the hotel and head south on 16th St. In a few blocks you can cross Lafayette Square and stand right outside the oldest public building in Washington: The White House. Public tours must be booked several weeks in advance. In many European cities, a palace is the centerpiece. George Washington hired Frenchman Pierre L’Enfant to design the federal city. L’Enfant chose to make the Capitol, home of the legislative branch, the city’s center. The quadrants (NW, NE, SW, and SE) all meet beneath the Capitol dome, but the Capitol and the White House bookend Pennsylvania Avenue as equals. The Jefferson, Washington, DC • 1200 16th St. NW • Washington DC, 20036 2 A design competition was held for the White House and Jefferson entered, anonymously. To his surprise, he lost to an Irishman named James Hoban who based his design on Leinster House in Dublin, currently the home of the Irish Parliament. Ironically, Jefferson was the first president to live in the White House throughout his term. Although at first he complained that the house was “big enough for two emperors, one pope, and the Grand Lama in the bargain,” he soon enlisted Benjamin Latrobe to add east and west colonnades to the building. Because the house was built of porous local sandstone, it often required painting. It was known as “the White House” as a result but only officially took that name in 1901 when President Teddy Roosevelt put it on the official stationery. Walk south on 15th St. (one block east of the White House) until you reach “America’s Main Street,” Pennsylvania Avenue. American history has literally found expression here since the early republic, from victory parades to protest marches, presidential inaugurations to state funerals. The broad vista reflects the ideals Washington, Jefferson, and L’Enfant had for the new capital. It was aspirational, designed to rival the great capitals of Europe. Wide, diagonal boulevards would radiate out from squares and circles intended to be small parks. Everything would be superimposed on a traditional grid pattern with numbered streets running east and west from the Capitol while lettered streets ran south to north. Proceed left (east) on Pennsylvania Avenue to Freedom Plaza, named in 1980 in honor of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. If you can dodge the skateboarders, notice that you are standing on L’Enfant’s map that includes the White House and the Capitol. In fact, the pink granite border comes from Texas, the streets are Georgia marble, the waterways are New York sandstone, and the city blocks are Californian granite— federalism cast in stone! Democracy is all about choices, and you have to make one at 14th St. and Pennsylvania Ave. One option is to walk south on 14th St. until you reach Constitution Ave. The building across Constitution Ave. on your left is the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. But be forewarned, there are so many fascinating things to see that you could easily spend the rest of the day— or week—here. In addition to the permanent collection, the museum is featuring a new “American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith” summer exhibit. Among its treasures: the portable writing desk Jefferson used to draft the Declarations of Independence, the inkstand President Lincoln used to draft the Emancipation Proclamation, the desk on which Elizabeth Cady Stanton penned the Declaration of Sentiments, a handstitched liberty banner from the 1790s, the pens used for the 15th Amendment (granting suffrage to formerly enslaved African American men) and 19th Amendment (women’s suffrage), to name a few. The Jefferson, Washington, DC • 1200 16th St. NW • Washington DC, 20036 3 Back on Pennsylvania Ave. as you cross 12th St., it’s hard to miss the enormous Old Post Office Building, a Romanesque structure completed at the end of the 19th century. Once called a cross between a cotton mill and a cathedral, the historic property is under a 50-year lease as the Trump Hotel. Honoring the American Bicentennial, United Kingdom gifted the U.S. with the tower’s Congress Bells. This landmark is one of only a few buildings allowed to exceed the height restrictions imposed on buildings in Washington. Have you noticed? The city has no skyscrapers. Pennsylvania Avenue also mirrors the growth of the federal government during the New Deal era. Many of the buildings that house government agencies were erected as public works projects in the 1930s. For example, the Department of Justice (one of the original four cabinet departments along with State, Treasury, and War) moved to the building on your right between 9th and 10th Streets. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) building occupies two blocks between 7th and 9th Streets, and fittingly, the heart of your tour. The public entrance is on the Mall side of the block near 9th St. This imposing edifice is both a museum and a working archive built to house the new government agency in 1935. It stands where Central Market was during Jefferson’s time. There he kept a meticulous log of which fruits and vegetables appeared for sale on which dates, a record now kept in the Library of Congress. NARA’s motto is “The past is prologue.” It keeps all charters, public laws, and treaties of the U.S., but is best known for the Charters of Freedom permanent exhibit in the main rotunda. Here you can view the original Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights. The building is open seven days a week and there is often a line, but it moves fairly quickly. Be patient, it’s worth it. The large Faulkner murals in the rotunda depict two scenes, one of Jefferson presenting the Declaration and one of James Madison with the Constitution. The scenes are fictional, but the people in each are real. The Records of Rights permanent exhibit features an original copy of Magna Carta, the English declaration of rights that dates from 1297. A giant touch-screen interactive display explores how Americans have debated issues such as citizenship, free speech, voting rights, and equal opportunity. Another must-see exhibit on display through September 4, 2017, is Amending America, which honors the 225th anniversary of the Bill of Rights (the first ten amendments to the Constitution passed by Congress ratified by the states as a package in 1791.) The exhibit looks at the struggle to extend civil rights in subsequent amendments through race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and immigration status. For helpful background, read the curator’s article and look at #AmendingAmerica. *For a culinary break, walk north on 7th St. to find numerous restaurants and cafes in Penn Quarter and Chinatown. The Jefferson, Washington, DC • 1200 16th St. NW • Washington DC, 20036 4 Head back to Pennsylvania Ave. The Newseum is at 6th St. with the words of the First Amendment proudly emblazoned on its façade. There is so much to see here: The gallery of Pulitzer-prize winning photos that gives a kaleidoscopic view of recent history, pieces of the Berlin Wall and the Twin Towers destroyed on 9/11, historic newspapers, interactive exhibits about journalistic ethics, the CNN Politics exhibit about the 2016 presidential campaign, and the current controversy about free speech on college campuses, it’s all here. Outside the museum, you’ll notice the front pages of papers from all 50 states and a few countries displayed daily. *Note that this museum is open daily from 9:00 a.m.
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