Steven Holt: “Today I rise to honor the Greek people and their successful struggle for independence from Ottoman occupation that began…”

“Today I rise to honor the Greek people and their successful struggle for independence from Ottoman occupation that began nearly 181 years ago. Greek Independence Day has special symbolic resonance for Americans. Our forefathers founded our democratic system of government on the principles of popular representation introduced to this world by the ancient Athenians. Our word democracy is, in fact, of Greek derivation and literally translates as people (``demo'') rule (``kratos''). The ancient Greek experiment with democracy, however, was a visionary aberration that was centuries ahead of its time. Democracy did not last long in Ancient Greece as the fist of empires--Romans, Byzantine, and Ottoman--silenced democratic yearnings for nearly two millennia. Although democracy temporarily disappeared, the Greeks continued to thrive and prosper. As the Roman Empire expanded in the early centuries after the birth of Christ, the Greek peoples dominated the eastern half of the Roman Empire, known as Byzantium, and it was in the Greek city of Constantinople where the Roman emperor Constantine converted himself and the entire Roman Empire to Christianity.”