COUNCIL FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
Chair ’ s
COLUMN
Am I a Good
Citizen ?
Lebron James wears it on his shoes . Miley Cyrus has it tattooed on her forearm . ESPN made a whole series with Tom Brady using the namesake . The Washington Post even wrote an article on how celebrities get it wrong . To what am I referring ? Well , of course , President Teddy Roosevelt ’ s famous quote commonly identified as “ The Man in the Arena .”
For those of you unfamiliar with the quote , it is as follows :
“ It is not the critic who counts ; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better . The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena , whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood ; who strives valiantly ; who errs , who comes short again and again , because there is no effort without error and shortcoming ; but who does actually strive to do the deeds ; who knows the great enthusiasms , the great devotions ; who spends himself in a worthy cause ; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement , and who at the worst , if he fails , at least fails while daring greatly , so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat .”
This passage has been a battle cry , mantra , inspiration , devotional , etc ., for many , including athletes , presidents , corporations ( watch Cadillac ’ s “ Dare Greatly ” commercial featured at the 2017 Oscars ), and even me . It is my go-to meditation when I ’ m feeling attacked , criticized , or overwhelmed with anxiety that I ’ m letting someone or something down because what I ’ m doing isn ’ t perfect . In effect , the words provide perspective and help to quell the naysayers , at least in my mind . But
by Lisa Gallagher , Esq . Bank of America Private Bank
like so many , I accepted the words in a vacuum , without exploring their context . Well for the benefit of us all who love this quote , I will briefly share some things I ’ ve learned about this famous passage .
The quote is from a speech given by Teddy Roosevelt on April 23 , 1910 ( almost exactly one year after he left office ) at the Sorbonne in Paris , France . The name of the speech is “ Citizenship in a Republic .” It ’ s a long speech , and one definitely worth reading ; here is the link .
In the speech , President Roosevelt talks about the unique challenges inherent in a democratic republic . He talks about the interplay between individualism and the role of government . He chides laziness , inefficiency , and intolerance . He applauds self-reliance , the arts , character and duty , loyalty to the democratic republic . He warns of the potential for abusive journalism and abhors cynicism . The below is a great passage on cynicism :
“ There are many men who feel a kind of twisted pride in cynicism ; there are many who confine themselves to criticism of the way others do what they themselves dare not even attempt . There is no more unhealthy being , no man less worthy of respect , than he who either really holds , or feigns to hold , an attitude of sneering disbelief toward all that is great and lofty , whether in achievement or in that noble effort which , even if it fails , comes second to achievement . A cynical habit of thought and speech , a readiness to criticize
12 | THE DOCKET - OCTOBER 2023