The U.S. is an “aspirational republic.” As a nation built on high ideals yet plagued by the legacies of slavery and violence toward Native American people, we are a nation of paradoxes: We strive for high ideals while we continue to be dragged down by a foundational contradiction. So much of our history has been an effort to match our high ideals with political reality, to move toward our aspirations by correcting our shortcomings.