The column below reflects the views of the author, and these opinions are neither endorsed nor supported by WisOpinion.com.
The huge division in our country is not just political; it has grown to be personal. We look with hate toward those whose beliefs, policies or color do not match our own. We are told those who differ from us threaten our freedom, jobs and our family.
We used to advocate for the underdog and pursue justice. We used to build bridges, now we build walls. After World War II we displayed our moral convictions We fed the poor, we aided the down-trodden and welcomed those at the margins.
This year gave us the Big Beautiful Bill which gave huge tax cuts to corporations and the wealthy while making healthcare unaffordable for millions of our fellow citizens. Our elected officials reject the moral obligation of helping those with too little both here and around the world.
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Our nation for most of its existence has accepted the human equality of all people along with the task to wipe away the sufferings of fellow human beings. The hopes of the world once rested upon the United States.
Today we are adrift and divided. If our leaders will not stand by the principle that the rights of everyone are diminished when the rights of one person are threatened; we have a moral crisis, not just a failure of conscience.
Our 250th anniversary as a nation and a democracy will be celebrated in 2026. Let us return to seeking the well-being of others, defense of the persecuted and serve rather than rule.
Insist that our elected officials return America to a nation of caring compassion with a determination to end the sufferings of our own people and those around the world.
Helping others does not make us suckers and losers; it just makes us good Americans again.
– Hanson, of Elkhorn, is a member of the Walworth County Democratic Party.
