Two-hundred forty years ago the dreams of a new nation became an international reality when Great Britain ceded its colonies to the USA. During the prior seven years of revolutionary struggle, 25,000 patriots gave their lives in the name of liberty, justice, representation, equality, happiness, and peoplehood.

Eighty years later, free and slave states fought over the same values, costing 700,000 Americans their lives and a similar number their physical and mental wholeness.

Eighty years hence, the same set of values were threatened as the German war and death machines swept across Europe. A half-million Americans died, and even more were wounded defending allies, cultural roots, and the livelihoods of 135 million Americans.

We are 80 years hence and Americans have an urgent question to answer about these same values, values for which, since 1776, millions have lost life, limb, and mental health, hopes, aspirations, and loves. Millions of livelihoods hobbled and cut short on battlefields, ghetto alleyways, homeless campsites, coalfields, C-suites and emergency room tables.

Will the ideals of liberty, justice, general welfare, happiness, representation, and peoplehood, values named in this nation’s founding documents, continue as its organizing values? If so, are we willing to defend and continue exploring all that these ideals promise? Are we ready to proceed along the handrail-less path of realizing their fullest expression whilst maintaining them in balance?

Or, alternatively, have we exhausted humanity’s most daring experiment in republican governance, governance that has matured into a democracy? Has cultural diversity beaten deliberative governance? Did those millions of sons and daughters inspire Americans this far — but no further?

I believe America’s original values remain fundamental, but that their expression has stalled. Only by restarting the project of values extension and expansion can America and its people be renewed. Virtuous Americans must transform our values from idealistic possibility to rich eventuality — for every American.

Survey the demographics of any year in America’s history since 1620 and you’ll find a population that’s ethnically diverse — a mix of Native peoples, Africans and immigrants from Europe and, later, other continents. In 1783, the population of what is now the USA was at most half northern European, and diversity of all types has only since increased. Our centuries-long history of religious, cultural, and ethnic diversity is no weakness. On the contrary, American peoplehood has always reflected diversity and we have thrived economically and geopolitically for it. That’s a reality to celebrate.

However, not every American has the opportunity to thrive, has the unobstructed (though bumpy) pathway and resources to pursue their own personal style of freedom and flourishing (happiness). Americans must commit themselves to dismantling barriers to the pursuit of happiness and general welfare, followed by providing all 332 million of us the resources necessary to enjoy a free, dignified, contributory and fulfilling life. Justice, trust and loyalty will be more easily achieved when the aspirations of each of us are valued and nourished.

Lastly, while Americans revere the Bill of Rights as the guarantor of rights such as religious expression, the document’s primary purpose was to prohibit congressional action. If, in 1790, you sought information about your rights, then you looked to your state constitution.

State constitutions vary because they represent their respective state residents. Such a model of federalism respects the reality of cultural pluralism, for example, that Floridians desire a law code that reflects themselves rather than Oregonians or Congress.

Embracing federalism, as well as accommodating a subgroup’s morally grounded request for a policy exemption when harms are minor, is a way to respect pluralism, boost representation and build solidarity.

Maximizing inclusive but differentiated representation should be America’s goal.

Americans are a diverse people who’ve employed a set of values to mediate differences. Millions have sacrificed their freedom, thereby enabling the living to pursue personalized forms of freedom and happiness. Let’s not let those sacrifices fade in significance. Rather, let’s push our values beyond mediating differences towards universal flourishing.

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