| Last week’s curation at RealClear’s American Civics portal features two pieces centered on the important themes of gratitude and giving thanks in light of our national celebration of Thanksgiving. First, at RealClearPolicy, Jack Miller, the founder and chairman of the Jack Miller Center, argues that we should see the Thanksgiving holiday “as an opportunity to quit complaining about all the things that are wrong in our country and the world” and instead focus on “all the things we should be thankful for.” Above all, he contends that Americans should be grateful to live “in a country that is blessed with ‘liberty and justice for all.’” And we can be thankful that our nation, which was “founded on principles of human dignity and universal freedom,” has progressed much “toward achieving the promise in our Declaration of Independence that all people ‘are created equal’” and possess equal rights. We can safeguard this American promise for future generations, Miller writes, by teaching our children about America’s story. They need to know about “the first Thanksgiving and the miracle of the American Revolution,” and they need to be introduced to great “Americans like Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass.” As Miller concludes, we should have “great gratitude” for what our country has already achieved and what we will achieve “with a better understanding of our shared principles, along with a little hard work.” At RealClearPolitics, Jack Miller Center senior fellow Paul Carrese focuses on George Washington’s famed 1789 Thanksgiving Proclamation. He says that we owe a debt of gratitude to Washington, the indispensable father of the country, “who elevated America by calling for obedience to divine truths about justice, peace, forgiveness, and equal liberty for all.” Calling for a “day of public thanksgiving and prayer,” Washington noted that “It is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor.” Washington called all Americans to acknowledge “with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity to peaceably establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.” Essential Reading Jack Miller, RealClearPolicy The first Thanksgivings in America were about celebrating survival. Spanish and French explorers set aside days to... Paul Carrese, RealClearPolitics This Thanksgiving, we should set aside time not only for prayer as a grateful nation, a practice... In the News Armstrong Williams, RealClearPolitics R. J. Snell, Public Discourse Peter Hitchens, Compact Richard Rahn, Washington Times Walter Kirn, Unbound Derrick Morgan, Daily Signal Charles F. McElwee, RealClearPolitics Jay Cost, National Review C. Bradley Thompson, Substack Jack D. Warren, American Crisis Paul G. Summers, Tennessean Sarah Pruitt, History.com Fred Bauer, City Journal Robert G. Joseph, Substack Naomi Schaefer Riley, Deseret News Hillsdale College Hillsdale College is an independent institution of higher learning founded in 1844 by men and women 'grateful... National Constitution Center Students are invited to explore the origins and importance of this national holiday. Learn about the Wampanoag... Carl Cannon's Great American Stories It's the Friday after Thanksgiving and also the day of the week when I share a quotation intended to be ... Sixty years ago today, President John F. Kennedy boarded a military helicopter on the South Lawn of the White House ... When this nation was attacked 22 years ago from the skies that Bruce Springsteen would describe as "the same unbelievable ... | 