Latest news with #JaneKamensky
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
Thomas Jefferson's Monticello & More Perfect Launch Declaration of Independence Book Club Ahead of America's 250th Birthday
A National Invitation to Revisit America's Founding Ideals and Reflect on Their Meaning Today CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., July 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Monticello and More Perfect are proud to announce the launch of the Declaration of Independence Book Club, a nationwide invitation for Americans to reflect on the founding document that declared our independence and continues to define our democratic promise. The Book Club, launched on July 4, 2025 at Monticello, marks the beginning of a year-long civic engagement initiative leading up to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026. In three guided sessions, participants will explore the Declaration's revolutionary ideas, its complex legacy, and what it means to affirm those ideals today. Designed for book clubs, classrooms, faith communities, and civic groups, the Declaration of Independence Book Club Reader is free and available online. It includes short essays, historical timelines, discussion questions, and video content to support both in-person and virtual conversations. The sessions are organized around three themes: 'The Declaration Book Club is one of the many exciting elements of our celebration of the nation's 250th birthday in 2026,' said Jane Kamensky, president of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. 'We think Americans are hungry for the opportunity to rediscover, discuss, and celebrate the Declaration. We can all take inspiration from its global impact and lasting legacy.' The Declaration of Independence Book Club is part of a growing constellation of efforts to mark America's semiquincentennial by reconnecting Americans across differences in conversation about the values that define us. The initiative will also be featured at a Constitution Day event on September 17 hosted by More Perfect and iCivics at American University. 'The Declaration is more than a historical artifact; it's a living promise,' said More Perfect CEO, John Bridgeland.. 'This Book Club offers Americans and communities across the country a space to consider how we carry that promise forward.' To explore the toolkit, visit: About The Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello The Thomas Jefferson Foundation was incorporated in 1923 to preserve Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Today, the foundation seeks to bring history forward into national and global dialogues by engaging audiences with Jefferson's world and ideas and inviting them to experience the power of place at Monticello and on its website. Monticello is recognized as a National Historic Landmark, a United Nations World Heritage Site and a Site of Conscience. As a private, nonprofit organization, the foundation's regular operating budget does not receive ongoing government support to fund its twofold mission of preservation and education. For information, visit About More Perfect More Perfect is a nonpartisan alliance of 37 Presidential Centers, National Archives Foundation, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Karsh Institute for Democracy at the University of Virginia, and more than 100 organizations working together to advance five foundational Democracy Goals: 1) Universal Civic Learning; 2) Expanding National Service & Volunteering; 3) Bridging Divides & Building Trust; 4) Trusted Elections & More Representative and Responsive Governance; and 5) Access to Trusted News & Information. For press inquiries, contact: [email protected] View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE More Perfect
New York Times
05-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Donald Trump, Our Foundering Father
I called my brother, Kevin, to ask if he would spend Independence Day with Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and me. Monticello has a new tour focusing on the fond and fractious relationship of Jefferson and Adams, which culminated in an exchange of 158 letters in their last 14 years of life. The historian David McCullough deemed this attempt of the fiery Bostonian and reticent Virginian to overcome their political feuds and understand each other 'one of the most extraordinary correspondences in American history.' My favorite anecdote about Adams and Jefferson, who both loved Shakespeare and used the Bard's psychological insights as inspiration when they conjured the country, concerned their visit to Shakespeare's house in Stratford-upon-Avon. As Abigail Adams recalled, Adams cut a relic from Shakespeare's chair while Jefferson 'fell upon the ground and kissed it.' Our family trip to Monticello on Wednesday was suggested by Jane Kamensky, a very cool historian of the American Revolution and the president and C.E.O. of Monticello and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation. She thought that my Trump-supporting brother and I might appreciate the new tour, 'Founding Friends, Founding Foes,' as inspiration for 'a thoughtful dialogue across the divide.' Kevin laughed when I told him about the invitation. 'I'm amused,' he said, 'that we are the example of modern-day comity and civility.' Americans are at one another's throats, living in a world of insults, coarseness and cruelty, a world where Donald Trump and JD Vance excel. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
