An Open Letter To Our Granddaughters

January 20, 2021

An open letter to our granddaughters, born and unborn:

Today is Inauguration Day, a day of new beginnings for our country. As we write this, we do not know if today’s transition of power will be peaceful, but we do know that by the end of the day there will be a new administration - one that promises more equity, more decency, and more compassion than the one that is leaving.

Every four or eight years, our government and our country witness a transition. The presidential term limit is one of the safeguards that keeps our republic from becoming an autocracy. Before 1951, when the 22nd amendment made it illegal for a president to be elected to more than two terms, it was the unwritten policy that presidents would serve only two terms until President Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected to four terms, seeing the country through the Great Depression and most of World War Two. Roosevelt’s terms in office were seen as an anomaly that should not be repeated, though he had enjoyed high approval ratings throughout his tenure.

A new administration, and most particularly this one, promises a renewed commitment to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” as expressed in the Declaration of Independence, and to our Bill of Rights, which includes the guarantee that all Americans can express their religions freely and vote without suppression. While we are well aware that our founders meant that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, as well as the right to vote, only be granted to white men, those wrongs have at least been corrected legislatively. Nonetheless, there are still sizable challenges to making sure everyone is included in the promise.

But included they must be. And, so, this is our pledge to you. We will continue to work, both locally and nationally, with our communities and this new administration, for women’s reproductive rights, equity in education and the workplace, an end to homelessness and food insecurity, increased responses to climate change, humane immigration policies, and universal health care. 

So when you ask us, “What did you do in 2021?,” this is what we will say. This is the legacy we pass on to you, dear granddaughters.

With love and hope,
Therese
Judy
Mary
Kim
Leading Ladies Executive Team
leadingladiesvote.org