1925 State of the Union Address

1925 State of the Union Address

Date	December 8, 1925 (1925-12-08)
Venue	House Chamber, United States Capitol
Location	Washington, D.C.
Coordinates	38°53′23″N 77°00′32″W
Type	State of the Union Address
Participants	Calvin Coolidge
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The 1925 State of the Union Address was written by Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president of the United States, on December 8, 1925. It was the third address by Coolidge.

Themes

The President reported that in the fading aftermath of World War 1, the general state of the nation was one of peace and increasing prosperity. On foreign policy, the President mentioned his support of an international court of justice. On the topic of Prohibition, the President supported its enforcement. On the topic of civil rights for African Americans the President said:

But it does mean the full right to liberty and equality before the law without distinction of race or creed. This condition can not be granted to others, or enjoyed by ourselves, except by the application of the principle of broadest tolerance. Bigotry is only another name for slavery. It reduces to serfdom not only those against whom it is directed, but also those who seek to apply it. An enlarged freedom can only be secured by the application of the golden rule. No other utterance ever presented such a practical rule of life.

The President closed the address with a message of great hope looking upon the future of the nation:

It is apparent that we are reaching into an era of great general prosperity. It will continue only so long as we shall use it properly. After all, there is but a fixed quantity of wealth in this country at any fixed time. The only way that we can all secure more of it is to create more. The element of time enters into production, If the people have sufficient moderation and contentment to be willing to improve their condition by the process of enlarging production, eliminating waste, and distributing equitably, a prosperity almost without limit lies before its. If the people are to be dominated by selfishness, seeking immediate riches by nonproductive speculation and by wasteful quarreling over the returns from industry, they will be confronted by the inevitable results of depression and privation. If they will continue industrious and thrifty, contented with fair wages and moderate profits, and the returns which accrue from tile development of oar natural resources, our prosperity will extend itself indefinitely.