Newsroom

FREEDOM: Are we there yet?

Sometimes, it can feel like Memorial Day has become just another long weekend, a chance to fire up the grill or pile the family into the car for a road trip to the shore. If your family is anything like mine, the chorus of “Are we there yet?” starts almost the moment you back out of the driveway.

But in many ways, aren’t Americans asking that same question today? Are we there yet when it comes to our “more perfect Union”?

Memorial Day is about honoring the brave men and women who gave their lives defending this country and the liberties we too often take for granted. Across generations, Americans fought on different battlefields, in different wars, and for different causes, but they were all defending the same core ideals: the freedom to raise a family, worship openly, speak your mind, build a future, and leave greater opportunities for the next generation.

Those freedoms are not outdated values. They are the foundation of the American Dream. But the truth is that many Mississippians feel those freedoms are under pressure today.

We’ve seen cancel culture target free thought and punish people for speaking openly. We’ve watched government agencies weaponized against political opponents. Americans increasingly worry about attacks on religious liberty, threats to the Second Amendment, and growing government intrusion into everyday life. For many people, it feels like the country our servicemembers fought to defend is drifting further away.

But Memorial Day should also remind us of something else: Americans do not quit fighting for freedom.

At the State Treasury, we’ve worked to protect Mississippians from being debanked because of their religious or political beliefs. Across the country, conservatives are pushing back against government overreach and working to restore power to the people where it belongs. And after years of attacks on constitutional rights, Americans are standing up once again for the freedoms that define this nation.

Our country is not perfect. Even our Founding Fathers understood that. That’s why they spoke of building “a more perfect Union,” not a perfect one. America has always been a work in progress, strengthened by generations willing to sacrifice, serve, and fight to preserve liberty for the people who come after them.

That message feels especially meaningful as we celebrate America 250. For 250 years, American servicemembers have defended freedom around the globe. For 250 years, patriots have carried forward the work of preserving this great nation. And for 250 years, Americans have continued striving toward that more perfect union.

So, are we there yet? No. But are we moving in the right direction? Absolutely.

And thanks to the sacrifice of our fallen heroes, we still have the freedom to keep striving, keep fighting, and keep building a stronger America for the next generation.

May God bless our fallen servicemembers, their families, and all those who continue to wear the uniform in defense of this great nation.