Letters from an American
· collected 2026-08-24 · by Heather Cox Richardson
commentary
The article reports on the 13th week of videos from the "250 to 250" project, which honors the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence by highlighting American stories. This week's narrators include notable individuals such as John Palfrey, Ben Wikler, Billie Tsien, Scott MacFarlane, and Kahlil Greene, who share stories about American figures like Robert "Fighting Bob" La Follette, I.M. Pei, and Edward R. Murrow. The project aims to showcase the agency of everyday Americans to change their country through videos categorized by themes such as community, democracy, and innovation. There is no mention of specific numbers or statistics in this article, which appears to be a promotional piece for the "250 to 250" project.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-24,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Last week was the thirteenth week of videos from the 250 to 250 Project that we’re producing to honor the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
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we → produce → Independence
Our hope was for the videos to emphasize the agency of Americans—mostly everyday Americans—to change the country.
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videos → emphasize → country
Each falls into a category that defines what it means to be an American, including community, democracy, innovation, mobility, civil rights, education, conservation, and creativity.
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it → fall → community
Once again this week, some of our narrators chose their own topics adding wonderful new stories.
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some → choose → stories
This was yet another week of spectacular narrators who themselves represent the innovation, talent, and civic-mindedness we were hoping to celebrate.
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we → represent → innovation
You can follow the project at the sites listed below, or under “videos” at my own YouTube page: Heather Cox Richardson.
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You → follow → page
Or just wait until I send out the week’s roundup.
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I → wait → roundup
Follow Along | #WeAreAmerica250
Substack | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Bluesky | Threads
Treaty of Portsmouth, Narrated by John Palfrey
John Palfrey, recognized as one of the best leaders in America by U.S. News & World Report, is an American educator, legal scholar, and author who serves as the president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
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who → follow → Foundation
He is the great-grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for brokering the Treaty of Portsmouth.
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who → win → Portsmouth
Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette, Narrated by Ben Wikler
Ben Wikler is an American political organizer and New York Times best-selling author who served as the chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin from July 2019 to July 2025.
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who → narrate → July
Wikler’s latest book This Is The Plan: How to End America’s Meltdown and Save Democracy is now available.
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This → end → Democracy
Wikler profiles Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette, the Wisconsin reformer who battled corporate power and drove some of the Progressive Movement’s greatest victories.
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who → profile → victories
Tsien profiles architect I.M. Pei, whose bold geometric designs—from the National Gallery’s East Wing to the Louvre pyramid—helped define American modernism.
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designs → profile → modernism
MacFarlane has earned 20 Emmy and Edward R. Murrow awards and the Anna Quindlen Award for excellence in journalism from the Child Welfare League of America.
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MacFarlane → earn → America
Edward R. Murrow was a radio and television newscaster whose unflinching reports set the standard for American broadcast journalism.
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reports → set → journalism
Norman Rockwell, Narrated by Kahlil Greene
Kahlil Greene, the “Gen-Z Historian,” is a well-known digital educator, Peabody Award winner, and two-time Emmy nominee with an audience of over 50 million views across TikTok, Instagram, and author of History Can’t Hide on Substack.
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History → narrate → Substack
Greene profiles illustrator Norman Rockwell, whose beloved images of everyday American life evolved to confront war, civil rights, and the nation’s conscience.
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images → profile → war
Tlingits, Narrated by Rosita Worl
Dr. Rosita Worl is a Tlingit American anthropologist, educator, and president of the Sealaska Heritage Institute recognized as an expert in Southeast Alaska Native culture and history.
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Worl → narrate → culture
Worl introduces the Tlingit people, “People of the Tides,” who have stewarded Southeast Alaska’s coasts since time immemorial and fought to defend Indigenous rights.
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who → introduce → rights
Governor Josh Stein of North Carolina is lifelong public servant who previously served in the state Senate, as Senior Deputy Attorney General for consumer protection, and as North Carolina Attorney General.
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who → serve → General
Governor Stein celebrates the Wright brothers, whose 12-second flight at Kitty Hawk in 1903 launched the age of aviation.
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flight → celebrate → aviation
Head Start, Narrated by Jill Biden
Dr. Jill Biden is a highly regarded educator and former First Lady and Second Lady of the United States of America.
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Biden → narrate → America
Here, her history of Head Start reminds us that participation improves children’s language, literacy, and social skills.
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participation → remind → language
Lemon Grove, Narrated by Marianna Vinson
Marianna Vinson is a first-generation Mexican-American educator.
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Vinson → narrate → Vinson
The Superintendent of the Lemon Grove School District, Vinson formerly served as the Deputy Director for the Office of English Language Acquisition at the U.S. Department of Education.
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Vinson → serve → Education
In 1931, the San Diego County Superior Court ruled that the segregation at Lemon Grove violated California law.
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segregation → rule → law
Battle of Fallen Timbers, Narrated by Wes Siler
Wes Siler is an independent journalist who has spent the last 24 years writing about the intersection of public lands, conservation, and politics.
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who → narrate → lands
He’s currently building a new Substack newsletter about those topics.
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He → build → topics
He tells the story of the brief battle that forced Native American displacement from most of modern-day Ohio, opening it to white American settlement.
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that → tell → settlement
Mount St. Helens Eruption, Narrated by John Ebel
Dr. John Ebel is a highly regarded senior scientist at the Weston Observatory at Boston College whose expertise has made him the go-to source for media reporting on earthquakes in New England and around the world.
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him → narrate → world
He explains what happened in 1980, when Mount St. Helens erupted in the most destructive volcanic event in American history.
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Helens → explain → history
Woodlot Revolt, Narrated by Paula Peters
Paula Peters is a journalist, educator and activist.
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Peters → narrate → Peters
A citizen of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, she travels internationally to speak and educate on the true Wampanoag story.
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she → travel → story
Here she tells the story of the 1833 Woodlot Revolt, in which Wampanoag activists were arrested but the Wampanoag achieved a period of self-rule until 1870.
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Wampanoag → tell → 1870
Mayo Clinic, Narrated by Dr. Stephen Ray Mitchell
Dr. Stephen Ray Mitchell is an award-winning medical expert who currently serves as the Joseph Butenas Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics and Dean Emeritus for Medical Education at Georgetown University School of Medicine.
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who → narrate → Medicine
Dr. Mitchell has chaired the North American Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME) and has led accreditation visits to over 20 other Medical Schools.
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Mitchell → chair → Schools
He tells the story of the founding of the Mayo Clinic, which pioneered many hallmarks of modern health care.
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which → tell → care
Wilma Mankiller, Narrated by Julie Reed
Julie Reed is a citizen of the Cherokee nation, Native American historian, author, and professor whose reflective essays include a widely syndicated piece about Wilma Mankiller, the first female principal chief of Cherokee Nation.
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essays → narrate → Nation
