Contact: Margaret Kovar
Photo by: Sid Salter
Sen. Roger F. Wicker assumed the role of civics professor as he addressed more than 380 Boys State delegates Wednesday [May 29] at Mississippi State University.
Wicker challenged the audience with dates of important American history events to illustrate the importance of democracy and unification. He also used a $1 bill to remind delegates of basic American values and beliefs as expressed by the nation's founding fathers.
"E pluribus unum means out of many, one. This is the goal to which we aspired when the Constitution was ratified," he said. "People of all different backgrounds came together and were made into one nation."
Wicker left the delegates to ponder this question: "Will you as good citizens continue to make the decisions that have been made since this country's inception to keep us the greatest democracy there is?"
Wicker has represented Mississippi in the U.S. Senate since December 2007. He serves as Deputy Whip and is a member of the Armed Services Committee; the Budget Committee; the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee; the Environment and Public Works Committee; and the Joint Economic Committee.
Prior to his service in the Senate, Wicker was elected seven times, beginning in 1994, to represent Mississippi's First Congressional District in the House of Representatives. Before being elected to Congress, he served in the state Senate on behalf of Lee and Pontotoc counties.
The university is serving through 2015 as host campus for the Mississippi American Legion Boys State. Considered the nation's premier program for teaching how government works while developing leadership skills and appreciation for the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, the campus session began Saturday [the 25th] and concludes at the end of the week.
For more information about Boys State, visit www.msboysstate.com. For more information about Mississippi State University, see www.msstate.edu.