Each of us passes through phases in our lives with new challenges and new opportunities. One reason to study the lives of historical figures is to learn from the choices they made following setbacks. However, we can also learn from the choices they made following success. The 19th century African American abolitionist Frederick Douglass celebrated the end of slavery following the Civil War yet recognized there was much work to be done if America was to achieve equality for all. In 1869, he described his vision of a post-emancipation America in Our Composite Nation, a speech that resonates with many 21 st century Americans.
About Ray Tyler:
Ray is a retired U.S. history teacher now working part-time for Teaching American History (TAH), a non-profit organization supporting American history and government teachers with access to original source documents and professional development programs. In 2014, Ray was awarded the James Madison Fellowship for South Carolina for his commitment to teaching the Constitution to his students. In his retirement, Ray contributes to TAH’s We the Teachers Blog and on-going document curation efforts. For over 30 years, Ray, and his wife Linda Christopherson, have been members/friends of Piedmont Unitarian Universalist Church in Charlotte. Ray is a first cousin – and big fan – of our Pastoral Minister, Charlie Tyler.
