By Paige Drummond, Contributing Writer
Eisenhower Institute expert-in-residence Susan Eisenhower started off the institute’s Democracy Week on Monday with a lecture titled “From the Arsenal of Democracy to the Civil Rights Era: How World War II Transformed America.” The talk was held from 4 to 5 p.m. in the College Union Building (CUB) Ballroom.
Executive Director of the Eisenhower Institute Tracie Potts opened the event and introduced Eisenhower, and spoke about her role at the institute. Potts also noted that Eisenhower serves as CEO and chairman of the Eisenhower Group, is an appointee of Blue Ribbon Commissions and the National Academy of Sciences Standing Committee on International Security and Arms Control and is a member of NASA’s advisory council. She is also a commissioner on the International Space Station Management and Cost Evaluation Task Force, a member of MIT’s Energy Initiative Advisory Board, and co-chair of the Secretary of Energy’s new advisory board. Eisenhower additionally holds fellowships at Harvard’s Institute of Politics and the Nixon Center, and leads the Eisenhower Institute’s year-long seminar, Strategy and Leadership in Transformational Times.
Eisenhower began her lecture by outlining the effects of World War II on the United States, noting that 16 million Americans joined the war effort and that 417,000 military personnel and 1,700 civilians died. She described how her grandfather, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, along with other American leaders, worked to guide the country through the transformations that followed.
She went into detail about how President Eisenhower changed the nation, saying “he expanded the Social Security net, grew the middle class, built the interstate highway system and other infrastructure needs like the FAA and the Saint Lawrence Seaway, and he was the first to pass civil rights legislation since the reconstruction after the Civil War.” She added that he also worked to rebuild both the economy and his political party.
Eisenhower concluded the lecture by connecting these historical transformations to present-day challenges, then opened the floor for audience questions about President Eisenhower’s role in shaping the United States after World War II.
Although the lecture marked Eisenhower’s farewell address at Gettysburg College, Potts clarified that “it is certainly not the last time we’re going to see her share her wisdom and insights.” Potts said Eisenhower will speak in a few weeks at Hood College as part of the Hanson Lecture, a biannual event co-sponsored by the two institutions.
Eisenhower closed her remarks with a piece of advice for students in attendance: “There will be tough times in this country… but don’t be frightened. You know, pessimism and optimism take about an equal amount of energy, and pessimism is a waste of it. Be optimistic. Whereas Granddad would say: be for something.”
Featured image: Eisenhower speaks at lecture (Photo: Kailey Reinboth/The Gettysburgian)
