Letters from an American
· collected 2026-08-31 · by Heather Cox Richardson
commentary
The 250 to 250 Project has released its fourteenth week of videos to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, with each video highlighting a different aspect of American identity. The latest installments include profiles of Ellen Ochoa, the first Hispanic woman in space, and Molly Ivins, a Texas columnist known for her sharp wit and commentary on politics. According to the project's website, over 750 museums, historic sites, libraries, and archives are involved in the initiative. This week's videos were narrated by various individuals, including several notable figures such as Hope Delgado, Lauren Westphal, and Andy Borowitz.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-31,
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 fourteenth week of videos from the 250 to 250 Project that we’re producing to honor the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
asserted
we → produce → Independence
Our hope was for the videos to emphasize the agency of Americans—mostly everyday Americans—to change the country.
asserted
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.
asserted
it → fall → community
You can follow the project at the sites listed below, or under “videos” at my own YouTube page: Heather Cox Richardson.
asserted
You → follow → page
Or just wait until I send out the week’s roundup.
asserted
I → wait → roundup
Follow Along | #WeAreAmerica250
Substack | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Bluesky | Threads
Ellen Ochoa, Narrated by Hope Delgado
Hope Delgado is the Program and Content Associate at Made By Us, a national network of more than 750 museums, historic sites, libraries, and archives working to connect young people with history and civic participation.
asserted
Delgado → follow → history
Delgado profiles Ellen Ochoa, the engineer who became the first Hispanic woman in space in 1993, and later the first Hispanic director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
asserted
who → profile → Center
Soo Locks, Narrated by Lauren Westphal
Lauren Westphal is a proud Yooper born and raised in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
asserted
Westphal → narrate → Peninsula
Here, Westphal tells how the Soo Locks unlocked Michigan’s iron riches, becoming the “Linchpin of the Great Lakes” that fed America’s steel mills and westward expansion.
asserted
that → tell → mills
Trail of Broken Treaties, Narrated by Nick Estes
Nick Estes is an enrolled member of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe and Associate Professor in American Indian Studies at the University of Minnesota.
asserted
Estes → narrate → Minnesota
He co-hosts the Red Nation podcast and is the lead editor of Red Media.
asserted
He → co → Media
He recounts the cross-country caravan that indigenous activists organized in October 1972.
asserted
activists → recount → October
Borowitz celebrates Molly Ivins, the razor-tongued Texas columnist who skewered politicians and made a career of speaking uncomfortable truths.
asserted
who → celebrate → truths
Ice Industry, Narrated by Ken Lincoln
Ken Lincoln is president of the Thompson Ice House Preservation Corporation, which operates an onsite museum and sponsors an annual ice harvest.
asserted
which → narrate → harvest
Lincoln chronicles America’s forgotten ice trade, which revolutionized how the nation ate and drank before mechanical refrigeration melted the business away.
asserted
refrigeration → chronicle → business
Turek recounts the Dust Bowl, the 1930s environmental catastrophe that drove families from the Great Plains and taught America the value of soil conservation.
asserted
that → recount → conservation
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Narrated by Charlotte Clymer
Charlotte Clymer is a writer, activist, and military veteran.
asserted
Clymer → narrate → Clymer
She writes Charlotte’s Web Thoughts, a popular, award-winning Substack newsletter about politics, religion, foreign policy, and culture.
asserted
She → write → politics
Here, Clymer honors the unbroken 89-year vigil at Arlington's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a solemn promise never to forget those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
asserted
who → honor → sacrifice
Women’s Club Movement, Narrated by Katie Paris
Katie Paris is an Ohio suburban mom and 25-year political veteran.
asserted
Paris → narrate → Paris
In 2019, Paris quit her job in national politics to found Red Wine & Blue, a community of over half a million diverse suburban women, working together to defeat extremism, one friend at a time.
asserted
Paris → quit → time
Paris explores the women's club movement, whose millions of members shaped Progressive Era reform and the fight for civil rights.
asserted
millions → explore → rights
Slaid Cleaves is a Texas-based singer/songwriter whose music is rooted in traditional country and folk forms.
asserted
music → base → forms
He has been putting out highly acclaimed records for 25 years.
asserted
He → put → years
Cleaves profiles Johnny Cash, the “Man in Black” whose songs of rebels and outsiders made him a champion for the voiceless.
asserted
him → profile → voiceless
Great Migration, Narrated by Bryan Stevenson
The executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, Bryan Stevenson is a public interest lawyer who has dedicated his career to helping the poor, the incarcerated, and the condemned.
asserted
who → narrate → poor
Stevenson recounts the displacement of staggering numbers of people forced to flee the dangers and violence of the Jim Crow-era South.
asserted
Stevenson → recount → South
Katie Couric is an award-winning journalist, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Going There, co-founder of Stand Up To Cancer, founder of Katie Couric Media (KCM), and the first woman to solo anchor a network evening newscast.
asserted
Couric → win → newscast
Couric profiles Nellie Bly, a pioneer of investigative journalism whose undercover exposé drove reform in mental health facilities.
asserted
exposé → profile → facilities
She is one of the youngest mayors in the city’s history and is the first woman and the first Asian American to be elected to the office.
asserted
She → elect → office
Wu tells how Boston built America’s first subway in 1897, relieving a congested city and laying the groundwork for modern transit nationwide.
asserted
Boston → tell → transit
She served as Minority Leader in the Georgia House of Representatives.
asserted
She → serve → Representatives
Abrams profiles W.E.B. Du Bois, the pioneering scholar and activist who co-founded the Niagara Movement and helped build the NAACP’s fight for equality.
asserted
who → profile → equality
American soprano Melissa Givens is an Associate Professor at Pomona College, specializing in music of women and African Americans.
asserted
Givens → specialize → women
She is a frequent recitalist and clinician and sings with Grammy© winning Conspirare: A Company of Voices.
asserted
She → sing → Voices
Givens tells the story of Marian Anderson’s historic performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1939—one that she repeated at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963.
asserted
she → tell → August
Bilingual Multicultural Education Act, Narrated by Representative Teresa Leger Fernández
Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández represents the 3rd Congressional District of New Mexico.
asserted
Fernández → narrate → Mexico
She serves on the House Rules Committee and the Committee on Natural Resources and is chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus.
asserted
She → serve → Caucus
New Mexico’s Bilingual Multicultural Education Act (BMEA) of 1973 was the country’s first legislation intended to honor multilingual and multicultural identity.
asserted
Act → intend → identity
First Rhode Island Regiment, Narrated by Senator Jack Reed
Jack Reed, U.S. Senator from Rhode Island and Ranking Member of the Armed Services Committee, is a West Point graduate and Army veteran known as a bipartisan deal-maker on defense and consumer protection.
asserted
Regiment → narrate → defense
…and 1 more, not listed.
