April 12, 2025
Throughout my life, I have learned that we each get but one true choice: what we are willing to give our lives for. Alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and countless others, I chose to dedicate myself to the fight for civil rights. This journey was, in part, guided by one of America’s earliest champions of liberty – John Adams, a man who shaped not only his own time but laid the foundations for justice that resonate today.
Adams once predicted, “Monuments will never be erected to me.” He could not have foreseen how deeply his ideals would inspire those who came after him. The Adams Memorial Foundation has taken on the mission of ensuring that John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Abigail Adams, Louisa Catherine Adams, and their descendants are given their rightful place among the monuments of Washington, D.C. A memorial to the Adams family will serve as an invitation to all Americans to reflect on the principles we uphold. The Adams family will once again stand as a beacon, amidst polarization and mistrust, to remind us of the everlasting importance of integrity, personal responsibility, and public service. Let us build this monument, not only to honor the past but to encourage future generations to uphold the ideals that the Adams family so courageously defended.
John Adams, my favorite president, is often overlooked among the pantheon of Founding Fathers, but his impact on American ideals of freedom and democracy is profound. Adams believed passionately that all men are created equal, a truth forever enshrined in our founding documents. It was Adams who persuaded the Continental Congress to select Thomas Jefferson to draft the Declaration of Independence, an act that embedded the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” in our nation’s core beliefs. Adams’ work in drafting the Massachusetts Constitution, which remains the oldest functioning written constitution in the world, served as a model for our own U.S. Constitution, establishing the bedrock that has guided us through generations.