gerrymandering

 The Texas State House Republicans tonight, August 20, have passed a gerrymandered map. The vote in Texas to redistrict mid-decade was demanded by Donald Trump to hang on to power during the mid-term elections. Gerrymandering manipulates boundaries of an electoral constituency to favor a party and/or socioeconomic class. 

HIstory Smithsonian

 

Hey Friend,   President Trump has escalated his efforts to reshape cultural institutions. This week, he turned his attention to the Smithsonian museums, pressing them to downplay the history of slavery and “remove divisive narratives.”  This is an attempt to "white-wash" black history, neglecting to tell the whole story of black history, including accomplishments of people of African descent and the wretchedness of slavery.   The Smithsonian’s leaders have long said their mission is to help Americans understand the full scope of our history, including both the triumphs and the painful chapters. Now that mission is under political pressure.   This is how democratic institutions are weakened, not all at once but gradually, when leaders decide which parts of our shared history the public is allowed to see.

Women's Equality Day August 26

 The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote nationally on August 18, 1920, so why is Women’s Equality Day on August 26th each year?

The simple answer is that even when a constitutional amendment has been ratified it’s not official until it has been certified by the correct government official. In 1920, that official was U.S. Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby. On August 26, 1920, Colby signed a proclamation behind closed doors at 8 a.m. at his own house in Washington, D.C, ending a struggle for the vote that started a century earlier.

The New York Times ran the story about the document’s signing on its front page and noted the lack of fanfare for the historic event.

Colby had been asked by women’s suffrage leaders Alice Paul and Carrie Chapman Catt to allow groups in Colby’s office for the document’s signing and to film the event. Instead, Colby told reporters that “effectuating suffrage through proclamation of its ratification by the necessary thirty-six States was more important than feeding the movie cameras.”

The Times explained that Colby was concerned about the rivalry between Paul and Catt and wanted to avoid a public scene at the signing.

“Inasmuch as I am not interested in the aftermath of any of the friction or collisions which may have been developed in the long struggle for the ratification of the amendment, I have contented myself with the performance in the simplest manner of the duty devolving upon me under the law,” Colby said.

A package of documents from the state of Tennessee had arrived by train in Washington around 4 a.m. It included the official ratification document from the state legislature.

How Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the amendment on August 18, 1920, was a story in itself. Congress had passed the proposed amendment a year earlier, and it was supported by President Woodrow Wilson.

By the middle of 1920, 35 states had voted to ratify the amendment, but four other states—Connecticut, Vermont, North Carolina and Florida—refused to consider the resolution for various reasons, while the remaining states had rejected the amendment altogether.

So, Tennessee became the battleground to obtain the three-fourths of states needed to ratify the amendment. Harry T. Burn, a 24-year-old legislator, was set to vote against the amendment, but switched his vote on the Tennessee state house floor at the urging of his mother, assuring the 19th amendment’s ratification.

Yet, even after Burn’s deciding vote, anti-suffrage legislators tried desperately to nullify the previous vote.

In 1971, Representative Bella Abzug championed a bill in the U.S. Congress to designate August 26 as “Women’s Equality Day.” The bill says that “the President is authorized and requested to issue a proclamation annually in commemoration of that day in 1920, on which the women of America were first given the right to vote.”

As a footnote, the amendment certification process has changed since 1920. Now, the Archivist of the United States, who heads the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), is responsible for finalizing the ratification process.

Back in 1920, Secretary Colby’s attorney reviewed the documents that arrived from Tennessee. Today, NARA’s Office of the Federal Register reviews the documents and writes the proclamation for the Archivist of the United States to sign.

Section 106(b) of the United States Code spells out the finality of the process:

“The Archivist of the United States shall forthwith cause the amendment to be published, with his certificate, specifying the States by which the same may have been adopted, and that the same has become valid, to all intents and purposes, as a part of the Constitution of the United States.”

Celebrate the U.S.A.?

 As this country prepares for the 250th anniversary of its founding, how can we celebrate without being uncritical of its history? Princeton Professor of African American history Eddie Glaude Jr. says we have a MAGA embrace of American Civil Religion. Rather, the U.S. has always been on the road to a more perfect union. Cohesion can't come at the expense of diversity and the erasure of people in favor of a lily white America. It's a fantasy to think the foundation of the USA stands outside of history being a divinely sanctioned nation. 

Riverwalk

 Enjoying the new Riverwalk District in downtown Mason City. Burton and I walked there with Bishop Christopher deForest from NE Penn. Beautiful cylindrical light sculpture at dusk.

Walk after the rain

 After weeks and weeks of oppressive heat and humidity, after a storm passed through this morning, this afternoon we took a walk in East Park. Beautiful. 

Indigenous Peoples Day

  International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

On this International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, we honor the diverse histories, cultures, wisdom, and spiritual traditions of Indigenous communities across the globe.

We acknowledge the enduring presence and leadership of Indigenous peoples—and lament the harm caused by colonization, including the Church’s complicity in the erasure of Indigenous identity and sovereignty.

We are committed to listening, learning, and walking alongside Indigenous communities as part of the Spirit’s work of justice, healing, and reconciliation.

Today, we pray for Indigenous leaders, scholars, theologians, and communities. May their stories be heard. May their voices be honored. May their wisdom guide us.

Moon

 Stunning moon last night. 

  Sixty years ago, on August 6, 1965, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Finally all U.S. citizens could vote. However millions of people have been removed from the voter registration records in recent years. Meanwhile Trump thinks he is entitled to 5 more U.S. Congressional seats because he won Texas in the 2024 election. Either he is ignorant of the constitution and U.S. history, or he intentionally refuses to know so that he can impose his will.

Baptism and Bombs

 August 6 is the 80th anniversary of the United States bombing Hiroshima which caused the immediate death of an estimated 80,000 people. I was baptized August 6, 1939. Son Kirk was baptized August 6, 1969. Baptism and bombs! Here we are in 2025, living with nuclear weapons. We continue to live in a dangerous world. Today we also remember our baptisms, joined to Christ's death and resurrection and called to create communities of peace. 

Texas redistricting

 Texas Republicans are following Trump's desires. Governor Abbott will call a special legislative session to redistrict Texas to gain 5 added Congressional seats for Trump. This gerrymandering would make the Texas map one of the country's most racially discriminatory maps even worse. 

ELCA for the sake of the world

 The ELCA Churchwide Assembly has concluded. One of the final decisions was approval of the edited Social Statement, "Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust." Another was approval of implementing resolutions for the Social Statement "Civic Life and Faith," including repudiation of Christian Nationalism and support for voter registration and access to the vote. Truly this assembly took seriously "Ministry for the Sake of the World."