John W. Gardner Quotes
We need more than individual value systems; we need a shared vision. A nation is held together by shared values, shared beliefs, shared attitudes. That is what enables a people to maintain a cohesive society despite the tensions of daily life. That is what enables them to rise above the conflicts that plague any society.
Gardner, John W. On Leadership. Free Press, 1990.
The first Native American to become a General Officer. Appointed by President Grant in 1869. When Lee arrived there were many Black troops and he mistook General Parker for a Negro but then apologized saying that “I am glad to see one real American here.” This was Parker’s reply.
At the time, there was very little national news in most newspapers and almost none about local areas and peoples other than the newspaper’s town. With the exception of New York and a few other cities, there was no news on the radio and TV had not yet been deployed. Most of the nation was very insular. It would not be until the Eisenhower administration that the national highway system was built. Most American spent their entire lives within 90 miles of their home and knew little about anywhere else other than NY, Chicago, Hollywood, Washington, and San Francisco.
John William Gardner was Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) under President Lyndon Johnson. He was a strong advocate for citizen participation who founded Common Cause and became known as "the father of campaign finance reform".
