AUK Acknowledges U.S. Presidents’ Day
Today, February 20, 2023, the American University of Kurdistan (AUK) wishes to acknowledge the contributions of the most accomplished leaders of the United States, on Presidents’ Day. George Washington and Abraham Lincoln are often recognized as the two greatest US Presidents, for their leadership of the country through tumultuous periods. Many people around the world are already familiar with the faces of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, as they are reproduced on the US $1 and $5 bills, respectively. Since both men were born in February (Lincoln on the 12th, Washington on the 22nd), the month of February was chosen for Presidents’ Day. It is observed on the third Monday of that month annually.
George Washington (1732-1799) was the first president, chosen by the electors unanimously, as no one else has been since. He had proven his mettle in personally leading the army of the Thirteen American Colonies in their battle for independence from Great Britain. Washington showed himself to be a skilled administrator as well once in office. He helped stabilize the country under its new Constitution (the same one in place today), embodying in the present and establishing for posterity the strong central government the new country was sorely lacking under its first plan of government, the Articles of Confederation. He also established the precedent of two terms, for a maximum of eight years, as the proper limit for service as President of the United States; he stepped away voluntarily after delivering a sagacious farewell address still quoted to this day.
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), a skilled lawyer, debater, and Senator, led the United States through an existential crisis: the American Civil War. The conflict that exploded into the four-year Civil War had its origins in long-standing disputes over states’ rights and economic differences between the North and the South of the large and growing country, with some Southern states breaking away from the United States, known as “the Union,” shortly after Lincoln’s 1860 electoral victory. Ultimately, eleven southern states seceded from the Union, declaring their independence as “the Confederate States of America.” Of course taking place domestically, the American Civil War was by far the most destructive conflict in US history, but Lincoln, as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, persevered, inspiring confidence in soldiers and the general population – most notably with his “Gettysburg Address.” Lincoln was not able to finish his second term in office, because he was assassinated by a Confederate sympathizer shortly after overseeing victory in the war.
The United States celebrates its Presidents in February, and other countries have their own holidays for honoring their leaders. On the occasion of US Presidents’ Day, the American University of Kurdistan wishes to make clear its own endorsement of those leaders in the United States and elsewhere who have contributed appreciably to the freedom and prosperity of the people in their countries.