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Doris Kearns Goodwin
Presidential historian and author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning No Ordinary Time: Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II

"What you see from other periods of great difficulty, and are seeing now when people band together to defy the enemy, is that fighting spirit. Not allowing the terrorists, Nazis or whomever to win by breaking our spirit. It's not that fear is taken away, but this passion not to be broken becomes greater than fear. Being part of a group gives you courage that you might not have individually. Most of the time, "nation" is an abstraction. But when a crisis happens, you remember in your heart what it means to be an American living in this country. Being part of something larger than yourself gives you an extra sense of strength."