Conversations in Management
The
world was a dangerous place as President Roosevelt addressed
Congress in January of 1941. The twin evils of Fascism and
Imperialism had unleashed chaos and devastation unlike anything
ever before experienced by mankind. At the time, America
remained one of the few peaceful spots on the planet. That
distance from the conflict and memories of the last Great War
turned many Americans into isolationists. They reasoned that as
long as America was safe, there was no need to fight other
people’s battles. In his speech, Roosevelt was attempting to
alter that perspective. He was alerting the nation to the fact
that in time, the enemies of democracy would make their way to
our shores and that the best time to defeat them was before they
ever arrived. As the speech ended, Roosevelt tried to broaden
America’s perspective by pointing out what we shared with people
everywhere in the world. He said our commonality was
based on four essential freedoms—the freedom of speech,
the freedom to worship, the freedom from want and
the freedom from fear. He believed that when these four
freedoms were globally shared, world peace would be inevitable.
Moreover, he believed that this wasn’t a distant vision, but one
of a world that was attainable, “in our own time and
generation.”
Inspired by
the speech, one of America’s most popular artists, Norman
Rockwell, determined to illustrate the Four Freedoms. He painted
them obsessively over a six-month period in 1942 and saw them
sequentially published by the Saturday Evening Post in
early 1943. The response was immediate and overwhelming. Over
25,000 people ordered a set of all four prints as soon as they
became available. The illustrations proved so popular, that the
Treasury Department organized The Four Freedoms War Bond Show
which featured the original paintings. The show toured
sixteen cities, was attended by one and a quarter million people
and raised over $130 million for the war effort. Capitalizing on
the popularity of the paintings generated by the show, the
Office of War Information printed an additional 2.5 million
copies. Rockwell’s illustrations and the Four Freedoms
themselves had clearly struck a responsive chord deep in the
country’s psyche. In a letter to Rockwell, President Roosevelt
wrote, “I think you have done a
superb job in bringing home to the plain, everyday citizens the
plain, everyday truths behind the Four Freedoms.”
Of the
four illustrations, Freedom from Want was, and is,
arguably the most beloved. It captures an extended family in a
celebratory moment of joy, optimism, hope—and thanksgiving.
These were feelings in short supply during November of 1943, yet
Rockwell’s painting managed to shine a bright light on the
resiliency of the human spirit. It sparks in us the recognition
that no matter how uncertain the times or difficult our
circumstances, we have the capacity to recognize the wonders of
the world around us and to give thanks. It reminds us of
the strength and comfort to be found when surrounded by people
we love and to be thankful for them. This Thanksgiving,
as plain everyday people, we’ll give thanks for our
Freedom from Want, but let’s also give thanks for all four
freedoms and remember those for whom the Four Freedoms
remain a distant vision. Happy Thanksgiving!
—Ebert
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