Mainers are once again on America’s flank | Opinion

**Jacob Fogel**,_born and raised in Portland, is a Navy and Army veteran. He is a senior at Brown University, under the GI Bill._ On July 2, 1863, some 386 soldiers from the 20th Maine Infantry Regiment assembled in line on a rocky hilltop in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This volunteer force comprised loggers, fishermen, laborers and farmers. Some had never fired a shot in anger. Some were only 16 years old. Outmanned, outgunned and exhausted from hours of intense combat, they looked on as the Grays massed for a final assault. The Union’s left flank and the future of the republic hung in the balance. “Fix bayonets!” the call echoed down the line. Hands trembling with fatigue, the soldiers drew blades from their scabbards, twisted them into place and, in a display of transcendental valor, charged down the hillside in what would become one of the most decisive actions of the Civil War. History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes. This year, as we mark the anniversary of the Battle of Little Round Top, Mainers once again find ourselves on America’s flank. The principles that define us — uncompromising honesty, commitment to community and fierce independence — are under threat from those who stand to profit from our division. Those same factions want us to forget our common history and replace it with ideological fictions designed to deceive us, divide us and disempower us. It is our duty to remember. Advertisement Three generations ago, my family fled Eastern Europe to build a life where a person could prosper by virtue of mind, muscle and moral fiber. My great-grandfather delivered newspapers.  His son became a social services lawyer. And my mother became a breast cancer surgeon, treating her fellow Mainers with dignity and compassion when hope was in short supply. This was my family’s American Dream. Prospering here meant accepting a shared responsibility. In times of uncertainty, from World War II and Korea to the Global War on Terror, we stepped forward alongside our countrymen, doing what we could to preserve opportunity for future generations. But our story is not unique. Many families around this state have worked harder and sacrificed much more in service of their communities. What makes Maine special isn’t any one family’s story. It’s how these narratives merge to form a culture, one where neighbors check on the elderly during a nor’easter and work at the local food pantry as a pastime, not an obligation. It’s a culture where volunteer firefighters charge toward burning mills, risking all of their tomorrows for the good of their community. I am deeply proud to have been raised in a place where, when there is a call to serve, it rarely goes unanswered. But as we approach the 250th anniversary of our nation’s independence, a day that should elicit that same sense of pride, I’m at a loss. This nation once welcomed my great-grandfather and shielded him from oppression. Today, many whose American stories are just beginning are being persecuted and abused. We used to demand leaders who approach conflict with solemn gravity born of real sacrifice; now, chicken hawks and bootlickers pound war drums in the hopes they might profit from the bloodshed. They weaponize our smallest differences, hoping we become blind to our larger shared truths, and see average Americans as livestock to be tended, rather than citizens to be represented. The state of our union is grim, and as the midterm election approaches, forces of division prepare for their final push, confident in their ability to break our lines. They’ve clearly forgotten whose standing at America’s flank. “Fix bayonets!” One hundred sixty-three years ago today, 386 American stories converged on a rocky hilltop in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. For some, this was the first chapter; for others, the last. In a final moment of preparation, the soldiers of the 20th Volunteer Infantry looked down the line at their comrades, their fellow statesmen, their friends, and charged forward together, showing a divided nation and the world what happens when Mainers answer the call. Copy the Story Link Tagged: [columns](https://www.pressherald.com/tag/columns/)